Happiness Comes to Those Who Smile
by jessie828
Summary: Wakana thinks about the first time she met Rihan. After the events following the time she tried to stop a heartbroken man from his dine n' dashing ways, an optimistic girl teaches him that the key to happiness is simply smiling  by stretching his cheeks .
1. Chapter 1 How They Met

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nurarihyon no Mago.**

**I was bored**

**Happiness Comes to Those Who Smile**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

"WE WANT FOOD! WE WANT FOOD! WE WANT FOOD!" The Nura mansion echoed with hungry spirits.

"Where's the food, Kino? Kubinashi asked as he walked towards the kitchen. "They're getting restless."

"They're coming out right now!"Kejoro yelled walking out with a tray full of food.

"What took you so long?" Kubinashi asked. Suddenly there a noise of breaking class coming from the kitchen. Then a voice saying "Gomen nasai!" followed. The two ayakashis rolled their eyes and walked inside the kitchen. "Gomen. I'll clean it up right now!"

"That's okay Wakana-sama! You don't have to!" Yuki-Onna exclaimed, desperately trying to stop the young master's mother. Unfortunately, the thirty two year-old woman bumped a pile of dirty dishes and knocked them down.

"Gomen nasai!"

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><p>"Wakana." The Supreme Commander of the Nura Clan, Nurarihyon. "Hai?" Wakana asked. "Bring me some sake." he replied. "Hai!" Wakana got up and left the room to the kitchen.<p>

She remembered her first time entering the Nura mansion. She looked at the plum blossom tree at their garden. _'My, it has really grown over the years.'_ Wakana thought. The plum blossom tree was a gift given to her from her husband on their wedding day. _'I can't believe it has been so long.'_ She thought. Sometimes, when she found herself alone, not doing any chores (or creating more), she would think about her dead husband. At first she would feel sad and lonely. But that would instantly change when she look at the beautiful son she created with her husband. Rikuo reminded her of Rihan so much. It pained her to see her son grow up and lead the Nura Clan without his father with him. She did the best she could to fill his role as yokai father, but she was only a human. Thank the heavens for his grandpa and the rest of the Nura Clan.

She remembered the first time she met him. In her family's restaurant. In was an interesting encounter. She never knew the man who was robbing her family money would ever become her husband.

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><p>"Gomen nasai!" a young girl with short brown hair. She accidentally spilled hot tea on a customer eating at her family's restaurant.<p>

"Miss, I didn't order this." another customer at another table said. "Gomen nasai!"

"Excuse me. When we be getting our food? We've been waiting here for an hour." another customer said. "Gomen, I'll ask the cook. Please wait a little longer." As she was walked to the kitchen, a man with long black hair stopped her at the table he was sitting in.

"Excuse me, can I have more sake?" He often came to their restaurant, but he never talked to Wakana before. "Hai!" Wakana replied as she passed her mother.

"Wakana!" her mother called out.

"Hai, Okaa-san?" Wakana asked.

"That man, what did he want?"

"Oh, he just wanted some more sake"

"Tell him he will not get anything until he pays his tab!"

"But I have to take care of all the other customers."

"I take care them. Your clumsiness would make the situations worse. Surely you can tell one man he needs to pay his tab without causing any physical or financial damage!"

"But-"

"Go tell him!" Her mother said and left in to the kitchen. Wakana turned around and walked to the table near the corner where the man sat. Wakana felt nervous. She was never good at confrontation.

"Where's my sake?" the man asked.

"Um…well, you have to pay your tab before I can give you sake." Wakana said, blushing.

"Is that so…?" the man asked.

"Miss! We've been waiting for food for over an hour!" the customer from earlier said.

"I'll be right-" as Wakana turned around to attend to the man, she bumped into a waiter holding a tray of empty glasses. "Gomen nasai! I'll clean it up!" But as Wakana turned back around, the man who was suppose to pay his tab was gone.

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><p>"Gomen nasai, Okaa-san, Otou-san!" Wakana cried. It was the end of the day and the family just closed the restaurant."I didn't think he would actually leave without paying!"<p>

"It's okay Wakana-chan!" Her father said. "That man has been dine-n-dashing for a month now!"

"You mean, he's done this before?" Wakana asked.

"Hai. But we'll get him someday, Wakana." her mother said.

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><p>A week after their incident, the man showed up at their family restaurant again.<p>

"Can I have some sake?" he asked Wakana. Wakana blushed, "I'm sorry, sir but I can't give you anything until you pay your tab."

"Don't people usually pay after their meal?" he asked.

"Um…well, yes but you didn't pay after your other meals so now I'm not allowed to give you any food or drinks." Wakana explained.

"What happens if I don't pay?" the man asked.

"Then," Wakana started. "I have no choice than to call the police." The man laughed loudly so everybody in the restaurant heard. "What's so funny, sir?"

The man smirked. " I'll tell you what. I'll pay the entire tab, if you sit here and pour sake for me to drink." Wakana gulped. "If I what?" Then he smirked again. "If you accompany me while I drink."

"Um, I don't think I should-"

"Do you want me to pay or not?" The man asked. Wakana thought for a moment. _'Okaa-san and Otou-san could really use the money.'_ "Deal." she said holding out her hand. The man placed some money into her hand. "Half now, half later." he said. Wakana nodded as she sat next to him and poured some sake into his cup.

"Aren't you gonna drink some, too?" the man asked.

"I'm only seventeen." Wakana asked.

"Really? Too bad." He said. "I wanted to get you drunk."

"You can't do that, sir!" Wakana exclaimed."I'm under aged and I work here!"

The man laughed. "Relax, I was only joking."

"Oh." Wakana said. She took this moment to observe the man. He had long black hair tied in a pony tail at the back. He was also wearing a black and green stripped kimono with one arm outside of the sleeve. He always had a smirk on his face and golden eyes, one of which was closed. He had a very handsome face. Wakana blushed at the realization. She never looked directly at him because she had trouble confronting him about his tab.

"You can stop calling me 'sir'." The man said. "My name is Rihan. What's yours?"

Wakana blushed again. "I-I'm Wakana." She cursed herself for stuttering.

Amused at her reactions Rihan held up his cup. "Well Wakana-chan, I'm out of sake." Wakana blushed at the suffix he added to her name as she grabbed the sake bottle with her shaky hands only to accidentally spill it on RIhan's kimono.

"Gomen nasai!" Wakana jumped from her seat and tried to use the napkins to soak up the spill on his clothes."I get a towel!" She ran to the kitchen. But when she got out, Rihan had already left the restaurant.

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><p>"Gomen Okaa-san, Otou-san!" Wakana cried during closing time.<p>

"That bastard!" Her father yelled. "If only I kept a closer watch!"

"Well, he did pay half of the tab." Wakana handed her father the money.

"It's better than nothing Wakana-chan." her father explained. "You did better than you mother and I."

"I'll do better next time!" Wakana exclaimed. She would wait for the man to show up and call the police. She would no longer wait for his explanation. She would just hand him over to the police and let them handle it.

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><p>"There you are!" Kubinashi yelled as Rihan came home. "Where were you? Kejoro sent you out for groceries and you went missing for seven hours! Everybody's looking for you!"<p>

"Relax, Kubinashi. I Just went to get a couple of drinks." Rihan casually explained.

"You were drinking sake, weren't you?" Kubinashi asked. " Are you drunk?"

"Yeah." Rihan smirked. "I was drinking with a very pretty girl." Kubinashi rolled his eyes.

Rihan laughed. "But I don't think I can go back to that place. I think she's gonna be very mad if I go back."

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><p>Wakana was walking home from a long day of school. She had just finished final exams. Of course being the straight A student that she was, she wasn't too worried about them. Her mother never allowed her to work in the restaurant during school days, so she was looking forward on taking a nap when she went home. <em>'Oh, I almost forgot,"<em> Wanaka thought. _OKaa-san wanted me to pick up some supplies and groceries.' _Wakana turned around and walked towards the market.

After buying everything she need she left the market with large bags on each hand. She was too busy focusing on not dropping the food, she bumped into someone. "Gomen, I wasn't watching where I was going." she said.

"Yo, Wakana-chan." A familiar voice said. Wakana looked at the person she bumped into. "Eh? Rihan-san?" He smirked at her. Wakana noticed that he was carry a small glass vase under his arm.

"Oi, that's a lot of stuff you're carrying there." Rihan observed. He held out his hand, "Want some help?"

Wakana was reluctant on allowing him to help her, but she gave him some to carry because they were getting really heavy. _'He wouldn't leave with my things, would he?'_ Wakana thought. "My house is this way, Rihan-san." Wakana said as she led the way to her house. There was a moment of awkward silence until Wakana decided to speak first. "You didn't pay the other half of the tab last time."

"Oh that," Rihan started to explain. "Well, I didn't have the rest of the money."

"You had money to buy a vase that looks really expensive." Wakana observed.

"Oh…."Rihan quickly thought random excuse to lie to the girl. "This vase belongs to my family. I ,uh, took it here to get cleaned." he said with his most convincing fake smile ever. Suddenly Wakana tripped dropped the bags she was holding. Fortunately, Rihan caught her as she was falling down. Unfortunately, he dropped everything as well, including the vase.

"Gomen nasai!" Wakana said. "I made you break your family's vase!" Suddenly an idea popped into Rihan's head. "Now what am I suppose to do? That vase was very important to my family! It was worth a lot of money! "

"Gomen nasai, Rihan-san!" Wakana formally bowed. "Please forgive me! I didn't mean to!"

Rihan smirked, "You dare ask for forgiveness? I can sue you and your family!"

"Ah! no please don't!" Wakana cried. "I'll do anything you want, just don't sue my family!"

"Well," Rihan started, waiting for her to respond.

"What is it?" Wanaka ask desperate to find something to get her out of this situation.

"You could get rid of my tab and call it even." Rihan said. Wakana looked at him, shocked. "But-but you owe us a lot of money!" she said. "Well, that vase costed a lot of money." Rihan said back. "and if this is settled in a courthouse, your family may end up paying even more."

_'Oh no!' _Wakana thought. _'Okaa-san and Otou-san can afford that much money! We've already struggling financially!'_ Wakana sighed, "Fine. But only for you existing tab!"

"Deal." Rihan said while smirking. Little did she know the vase was actually shop lifted from the store around the corner. _'I am a genius.'_ Rihan thought to himself.

Wakana took the bags from Rihan's hands. "I should go now; it's getting late. Thank you for your help and I'm really sorry." Wakana bowed to Rihan again and left in hurry. Rihan noticed Wakana dropped something while she went away. It was her wallet. He took the wallet and looked inside. He took money inside. _'Should I give this back to her?'_ he asked to himself. He sighed and decided to stop by the restaurant and give it back to her. _'I am such a good citizen.'_ he thought as he walked into a store to buy a snack with the money he took from Wakana's wallet.

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><p>Wakana was close to the restaurant when a fire truck past her. She looked as the fire truck as it went to a building filled with smoke. Then she noticed where the smoke was coming from. Wakana dropped the bags of groceries and ran to her family's restaurant. "Excuse me, sir, can you please tell me what happened?" She asked the nearest fireman as the fire began to die down. "Young lady, please step back for your own safety." He answered. "You don't understand, this is my family's restaurant! Are my parents okay?" "Excuse me, miss?" Another fireman called out. "Were your parents working this evening?"<p>

"Yes. They wouldn't let me work on school days so it was just them."

There was a pause when the fireman spoke again. "I'm sorry to tell you this, but your parents didn't make it through the fire."

"What? No!" Wakana felt tears forming in her eyes.

"Experts are saying the fire started from the stove." the fireman explained.

"That's impossible!" Wakana screamed, "It's past closing time, and Okaa-san always checked the stove before closing the restaurant!"

"I'm very sorry for your loss." he said. But Wakana was already on the floor, crying for the death of her parents.

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><p>Rihan was walking along with a bag full of snacks humming a cheerful tune. He finally saw Wakana sitting on the curb of the street. "Yo Wakana-chan!" He called out. But he stopped when noticed her crying face and the burned building behind her. Then he realized the building used to be the restaurant where he would eat and drink without paying the bill. Wakana looked up at him with swollen eyes. "What happened, Wakana-chan?" he asked, but he already knew what happened. He sat down next to her as he waited for her to answer.<p>

Wakana sniffed with her runny nose and spoke, "There was a fire," she began crying again, but she managed to say, " and Okaa-san and Otou-san didn't make it out alive!" She began huffing as it was getting harder to breathe and large tears fell from her face. Unable to say anything, Rihan wrapped her around his arms and pulled her closer. Wakana turned around and sobbed in his chest, letting her tears be soaked up in his clothes. Rihan patted her back as he waited for her cries to stop, but they only got louder.

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><p>After twenty minutes of uninterrupted sobbing, the two got up and left the burned building. Rihan was gentlemanly enough and walked her home.<p>

"Thanks for walking me home, Rihan-san." Wakana said. "You really didn't have to."

"No, it's fine." Rihan smiled. "It's really late." They stopped at front of her house. "Are you sure you're going to be okay here, all by yourself?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Thank you Rihan-san." Wakana turned and went towards the house.

"Oh wait, Wakana-chan." Rihan held out her wallet. "You left this at the market." Wakana took the wallet. "Oh, thanks."

"And," Rihan held out the bag of snacks. "I bought this with the money inside. You can have it if you want."

Wakana gave him a weak smile and took the bag. "Thanks." she said. "Good night, Rihan-san."

"Good night Wakana-chan." Rihan replied as he watch her close the door.

Wakana went inside the house and placed her wallet and the bag of snacks on the table. She crawled into her bed and cried herself to sleep.

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><p><strong>So there's my story on how Wakana and Rihan met. Thanks for reading! I'll try to update as soon as possible. <strong>


	2. Chapter 2 Recovering

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nurarihyon no Mago.**

**Hello everyone!**

**With school done, I'll have time to work on this. I'll try to update every week. **

**Thanks for the reviews!**

**Happiness Comes to Those Who Smile**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

It's been 6 days since Wakana's parents died. Each morning, she woke up with swollen eyes and wet pillows. She wouldn't leave her bed for hours. The only time she got up was to go to the bathroom or to get something to eat. _'I'm all alone now.'_ she thought as tears fell down at the side of the face.

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><p><em>"Gomen Okaa-san, Otou-san!" Wakana cried during closing time. <em>

_"That bastard!" Her father yelled. "If only I kept a closer watch!"_

_"Well, he did pay half of the tab." Wakana handed her father the money. _

_"It's better than nothing Wakana-chan." her father explained. "You did better than you mother and I."_

_"I'll do better next time!" Wakana exclaimed. _

_"Why are you so sad Wakana-chan?" her father asked. After hearing no answer he laughed. "Don't worry Wakana-chan, you'll get him next time." She looked at him with unconvincing eyes. "You should smile, Wakana-chan!" he said. "Happiness comes to those who smile." He smiled and grabbed her cheeks and stretched them until she smiled._

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><p>Wakana sniffed as she remembered one of the last times she talked with her father. <em>'I don't feel like smiling anymore.' <em>When finally realizing that she needed to eat something, she went back downstairs to get some food.

"Yo Wakana-chan!" Rihan greeted while sipping on a cup of tea. "AHHHH!" Wakana screamed. "Whoa, Wakana-chan, it's just me!" "Rihan-san? How did you get in here?" she asked after she recovered from her startled state.

"I, uh, just walked in. The door was, um, unlocked." Rihan lied. Of course, he used his 'fear' to break into her home. He didn't trust her being 'okay' in her house alone without any protection. Sometimes, he would stop by the house, during her sleep, and made sure she was ok.

He didn't know why, but he took a liking to the clumsy girl. It wasn't anything romantic. After all, his one and only was Yamabuki. Even though she left him centuries before, but he still loved her, and he can never imagine loving someone other than her. He had been with other women before, though. But they were just for company; he never felt anything for them. But, Wakana was different from most girls. Seeing how she was so uncomfortable around Rihan made him want to tease her as much as possible. Yes, he did take advantage of her naïve personality and scammed her and her family just to avoid paying for a tab that he could've easily paid for. But seeing her cry over her parents' death made him want to hold her and shelter from such a painful experience. After all, he too experienced what it felt like to lose a parent.

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><p><em>"Rihan!" a women with long black hair and wearing a pink kimono call out. The two of them were taking a walk when the 5 year-old Rihan decided to stray from his mother while she was taking to some neighbors. He went to a local food stand that was selling fruit. He saw the big juicy red apples and wanted some to eat. He looked around to see if anyone was watching. Rihan then took three apples and slipped them under him kimono."Rihan!" the women called out. "I'm here Okaa-san!" he called back and ran towards her.<em>

_"There you are!" his mother yelled. "Don't leave my side like that, Rihan! I was so worried!"_

_"Gomen, Okaa-san, I won't do it again." Rihan replied as they began walking home. While leaving, they happened to pass a beggar. "Please, spare some change." the man asked. Rihan watched as his mother took some coins and food out of her pocket and gave it to the beggar. "Thank you, kind lady." the man asked. After walking some more, Rihan asked, "Okaa-san?"_

_"Yes?" she asked. _

_"Why did you give that man your money and food?"_

_"Oh, because he needed some." she replied. Rihan thought for a second. "Okaa-san?"_

_"Yes, Rihan?" _

_"I need some money." he said bluntly. His mother stopped walking and giggled. "It doesn't work that way, Rihan." He looked at his mother with a confused look._

_"He needed money because he is poor, and I always try to help the people in need."_

_"Do I need to help people in need?" Rihan asked._

_"Yes," she answered. "You should always help people in need." Rihan thought about his mother's words until they reached the main house. "Yo Yohime." his father greeted. "How was your walk, Rihan?" _

_"It was okay." Rihan said. _

_"He went wandering all by himself when I was distracted while I was talking to the neighbors." Yohime said. HIs father laughed. "That's my boy!" he said as he patted on his back. However, the pat was a little too hard and made the apples under his kimono fall. The three of them stared at the apples as they rolled on the ground. _

_"Rihan!" Yohime yelled. "Where did you get those?" _

_"Um…I stole them." Rihan said, unable to think of a lie. _

_"Rihan! You should never steal!" his mother yelled._

_"But-but Otou-san does it all the time!" Rihan said back._

_"What?" Yohime turned to face her husband."_ _Ayakashi-sama!"_

_"Uh, I have no idea what he's talking about." his father lied. _

_"Yes, you do!" Yohime screamed. "You are setting a terrible example for your son!"_

_"But, I AM Nurarihyon. It's what I do." _

_"I don't care!"_

_This went on for a while so Rihan grabbed a red apple from the ground and bit into it._

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><p>That was one of the fondest memory he had with his mother. Of course his father came after him afterwards for tattling to his mother and chased him around the house. Besides that, he learned to help others from his mother. He learned to have a compassionate heart to those in need, including Wakana. Though, he wasn't really compassionate when scamming her, but that's only because he liked teasing her. But the death of her parents' was different. He remembered when his mother passed. It was almost as painful as when Yamabuki left. After all, He was a mama's boy.<p>

"Rihan-san?" Wakana asked.

"Hmm?"

"Why are you here?" she asked as she sat down and poured herself some tea.

"Oh, I was just checking up on you, just to see if you were alright." he explained. Actually, he spent several nights at her house. He just couldn't find it in his heart to leave her alone. "I just couldn't leave a pretty girl like you alone in this big house without any company."

Wakana blushed when he called her pretty, "Er, thanks Rihan-san," she said, "but I really just want to be alone right now." There was a moment of silence. "Do you want to talk about it?" Rihan asked. Wakana looked at the ground, avoiding Rihan's gaze. "You know, my mom died, too." Wakana looked up. "Really?" Rihan nodded. "I'm sorry." she said. "I had no idea."

"Don't worry, it was a long time ago." he said.

"How old were you?" Wakana curiously asked.

"Uh," Rihan started. _'Crap, she won't believe me if I told her she died when I was around forty years-old!' _"Uh, I was really young." Wakana looked back down. "Oh. You must really miss her."

"Yeah. I mean, she was my mom after all." Rihan smiled at the sad Wakana. "Don't worry Wakana-chan." he said. "It'll get better. I promise. Wakana gave him a smile.

There was another awkward silence until the doorbell rang. "Wakana-chan!" a female voice yelled. "It's your friends!" another voice, a male one, yelled. "Open the door before I knock it down its hinges!" the female voice yelled. Wakana got up from her seat and walked to the door. "We know you're in there!" Wakana opened the door.

"Hi, Wakana-chan." the boy said. "How are you feeling?"

"We tried calling but you didn't pick up the phone." the girl asked.

"May we come in?" the boy asked. Wakana stepped aside to let her friends in the door. The boy walked into the kitchen to put a box down on the table, but noticed there was a man sitting there. "Oh, hi." he said, a little bit startled . "I didn't know Wakana-chan had company. I'm Akira." Wakana and the girl walked into the kitchen. Rihan looked at the girl and his eyes widened. "Gomen, I forgot introduce everybody." Wakana apologized. "This is Rihan, we met at…our restaurant." Wakana looked down.

However, Rihan was still looking at the girl. _'It can't be her, could it?' _Rihan thought. Noticing, Wakana's sudden silence, Akira decided to introduce the girl. "And this girl is Wakana-chan's best friend and my girlfriend-"

"Yamabuki?" Rihan interrupted.

"Close," the girl said. "It's actually pronounced 'Kamiko'." she said sarcastically. Rihan looked at her confused. "It's a hard name to pronounce, you'll get the hang of it." she said, also sarcastic. She walked to the box sitting on the table and opened it. Inside the box, that had "Happy Birthday" on it. "Happy Birthday, Wakana-chan." she said.

"She also wanted to write "Sorry Your Parents Died" on it, but I told her not to do it." Akira said.

"Cake is comfort food!" Kamiko defended.

"That's not the point, Kamiko!"

As those two began to argue, Rihan walked to Wakana. _'I guess I mistook her as Yamabuki, but the resemblance is uncanny!'_He observed her face. Small chin, dark eyes, pale skin, just like Yamabuki. But it wasn't her. She had a completely personality; she was kind of mean. It was a complete turn off for Rihan; he liked nice girls. Aside from her off-putting personality, Rihan was pretty sure she was human. He saw no signs of 'fear' or demonic energy.

"Gomen." Wakana said, interrupting his thoughts. "Hmmm?" Rihan looked at Wakana."About what?"

"Those two," Wakana smiled weakly, "even though they're dating, they seem to fight a lot."

"Oh. It's fine." there was an awkward pause after. "You didn't tell me it was your birthday." Rihan said, changing the subject.

"Gomen, Rihan-san." she said." Wakana said, "With all the stuff that has happened, I completely forgot."

"Hey, let's put some candles on this cake and sing Happy Birthday!" Kamiko yelled as the fight with Akira ended.

"Thanks Kamiko, but I don't really feel like celebrating today." Wakana said.

"Aw come on, Wakana-chan." Akira whined. "It's your birthday, You should be happy! You're parents would've wanted you to be happy on your birthday."

"He's right, Wakana-chan. What did your father used to always say?" Kamiko asked. "Happiness comes to those who smile."

"Yeah, yeah!" Akira ran up to Wakana and grabbed her cheeks. "And then he would stretch them like this." He stretched her cheeks until her lips curved upwards in to smile. "See?"

"Alright! Let's eat some cake!" Kamiko exclaimed.

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><p>After hours of birthday-celebrating, Kamiko and Akira left Wakana's house. Rihan stayed behind to help with the dishes, because it's not a good idea to leave Wakana with fragile glass that can break at any moment. "Thanks again for helping me, Rihan-san." Wakana said.<p>

"No problem, Wakana-chan." Rihan smiled. "It's nice to see that you're getting better." Wakana smiled and went back to cleaning.

"Rihan-san?" she asked.

"Hmmm?"

"Who's Yamabuki?" Wakana asked. Rihan stopped washing the dishes. "She was a girl." he simply replied, not really knowing what to say. "What kind of girl?" Rihan smiled at her sudden curiosity. "She was my wife." Rihan said.

Wakana looked at him with wide eyes. "Your wife? I didn't know you were married."

Rihan laughed, bitterly. "Well, I was. But, she left me." Rihan frowned. "Oh, I-I'm sorry." Wakana said, feeling like she crossed a line by asking too many questions. "Don't worry," Rihan gave her a reassuring smile. "It was a long time ago."

"Well, you thought Kamiko was her earlier. So, you must really still love her." she observed.

"Yeah, I still do. I guess I was mistaken when I saw her, though." Rihan said as he went back to washing the dishes.

"Rihan-san, how old are you?" Wakana asked. "You seemed to be too young to be married. Rihan laughed. "What's so funny, Rihan-san?" Rihan smiled.

"It's a secret." he said and laughed again.

"A secret? Why aren't you telling me, Rihan-san?" Wakana really want to know. "Stop laughing at me, Rihan-san! Tell me how old you are!"

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><p>After days of staying at home, Wakana was faced a dilemma. She looked through the fridge, the freezer, and the pantry. Nothing.<p>

_'That's funny,' _she thought. _'I could've sworn there was enough food for me for a whole month.'_ Wakana sighed and got dressed. _'I guess I have to get more food then.'_ Wakana left the house and went towards the market area. When she finally reached the store, she took out her wallet to see how much she had. But, it was empty. _'Oh no! I forgot that Rihan took out the money to buy snacks!'_Wakana sighed. "Now what am I going to do?"

"Yo Wakana -chan!" Wakana recognized Rihan's signature greeting and turned to the direction where she heard him. "Finally getting out of the house I see." he said. Rihan just happened to be strolling through stores, not shoplifting, when he saw Wakana. "Well, actually I just came to restock on food, but um…" Wakana showed him her empty wallet. Rihan smiled uncomfortably,_ 'I knew I forgot about something!'_Rihan had been staying at Wakana's house every night since her parents died (without her knowledge, of course). He didn't trust little Wakana being all alone. And he was getting tired of Kubinashi pestering him. Usually, Rihan would eat some of her food after checking in on her. He promised himself to replace the food but he had forgotten. "I seem to be missing food, Rihan-san."

"Uh, let's go out and eat, Wakana-chan. I'll take you to a restaurant." Rihan said, changing the subject. He took Wakana's arm and dragged her to a restaurant. "What about this one? Do you want to eat here Wakana-chan?"

"You really don't have to do this, Rih-" her stomach grumbled loudly, and Wakana blushed. "It's okay Wakana-chan, we'll eat here." He led Wakana inside and told the worker they need a table for two. After getting seated, they quickly ordered the food. Rihan, of course, wanted sake with his.

"Thanks for taking me here, Rihan-san." Wakana said. "It's good to finally get out of the house. But now that the restaurant's gone, I need to find another job or I won't have enough money for food."

"Really?" Rihan said, feeling an idea forming in his head.

"But everything will be okay." Wakana gave Rihan a smile. "Otou-san always used to say 'Happiness comes to those who smile' so I should be optimistic. Though I really don't know how my food went missing."

"Uh, maybe you ate them all. You are getting kind of chubby, Wakana-chan." Wakana choked at a piece of rice at Rihan's remark. She tried to speak but the only thing that came out were coughs. After seeing that she wasn't getting better, Rihan handed her a drink. After gulping it down, Wakana finally caught her breath and began to calm down. "You okay, Wakana-chan?" He gave her another drink. "Here take some more." he said as he watched her drink it all down. "And another." he gave another one to her.

"This water tastes funny." Wakana said.

"Right. Water." Rihan smiled innocently. There he goes again, taking advantage of her naïve personality.

"You're really nice, Rihan-san." Wakana said, obviously drunk. "I thought you were bad at first, but now I know you're not."

"What? You thought I was bad?" Rihan asked, amused.

"Yes, you kept skipping out when Okaa-san looked for you to pay your tab." she pointed out.

"But after you helped me after the fire, I realized you weren't so bad." Wakana explained. Suddenly something caught Wakana's eye. "Look there's a doorbell on the wall over there, Rihan-san." Rihan looked at where she was pointing, and there was indeed a doorbell at the side of the bar. Wakana laughed, "There shouldn't be doorbells in here, they belong outside. I wonder what happens when I push it." Rihan couldn't help but watch Wakana wobble towards the side of the bar and press the doorbell.

The loud noise of a doorbell rang and silenced conversations from each table. "It looks like this young lady will be buying everybody a drink!" the bartender yelled. Apparently, those who were curious enough to press the mysterious doorbell had to buy drinks for everyone in the restaurant.

"Hooray!" the customers yelled.

"Hooray!" Wakana yelled back, not knowing what's happening. She walked back to her table. "Did you hear, Rihan-san? Someone's buying everyone drinks!" Rihan couldn't help but laugh.

Rihan was about to answer, but the Wakana said, "I'm getting sleepy."

"Okay, Wakana-chan." Rihan said, seeing an end to his fun. "I'll get you home."

"I'll call the waiter." Wakana said.

"No, wait Wakana-chan!" Rihan said.

"W-What?" Wakana asked.

"Well, you see, I don't have any money." Rihan said. Kubinashi never gave him much money to hold.

"But I-I don't have any money too, Rihan-san." Wakana said.

"I know. So why don't we just leave very quickly." Rihan said.

Wakana's eyes widened. "But -hiccup- that's against the law!"

"It's okay Wakana-chan. I'm going to count to three and then you run out as fast as you can." Rihan said. "One."

"But Rihan-san, we really shouldn't."

"Two."

"No, Rihan-san!"

"Three." Rihan slowly got up from his seat, but waited until Wakana quickly got up and ran out the restaurant. Rihan smiled. _'Atleast she didn't fall.' _he thought as he used his 'fear' to get away. When he reached outside, he saw Wakana falling asleep on the sidewalk. "Wakana-chan, you can't sleep here." He gently shook her, but couldn't wake her up. Rihan sighed. He took her off the sidewalk and carried her to her house. He gently laid her on her bed. "Otou-san…" Wakana said in her sleep. "do you think Okaa-san would be really mad because I broke her tea set?." Rihan smiled and pulled the covers over her. "Goodnight, Wakana-chan." he said as he closed the door and let the sleeping girl rest. "Goodnight, Otou-san." Wakana-san said sleepily.

* * *

><p><strong>"Happiness Comes to Those Smile" is what Wakana said to Rihan in chapter 177. <strong>

**Thanks for reading and please review!**

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	3. Chapter 3 Work

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nurarihyon no Mago.**

**I'm kinda getting some writer's block. I need more inspiration. Unfortunately, there's not a lot of history in the manga explaining their relationship. But, I'll try to write as much as I can.**

**Thanks for the reviews!**

**Happiness Comes to Those Who Smile**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

"What happened?" a police officer asked while entering the scene of the crime.

"It looks like the fire started in the kitchen." the fireman led him to the kitchen. "The stove, to be exact. No survivors."

"Another kitchen accident?" the officer asked.

"It looks like it. Why?" the fireman asked.

"It seems to be the same as another case. Family owned restaurant, same area, burned to the ground from the stove, and no survivors." the police officer explained. "Alert the other fire stations, we may have a serial arsonist on the loose."

* * *

><p>Wakana woke up with a massive hangover. Her head was in excruciating pain and eyes were extremely sensitive to the light outside. Her throat was really dry, but her muscles ached too much for her to get up and get a glass of water. Suddenly, she felt her stomach being squeezed and her throat tightened. She ran to the bathroom, ignoring the pain in her muscles. She lifted up the toilet seat and kneeled in front of it. The next thing she knew, she was throwing up her stomach contents in the toilet.<p>

* * *

><p>Rihan was causally sipping tea while watching TV at Wakana's house. "It was the strangest robbery ever," the reporter on the TV said. "The things that were stolen were large supplies of groceries, but the money in the cash registers were left untouched."Rihan smiled at his accomplishment. He heard Wakana's loud purging and went to the bathroom.<p>

"Ohayou, Wakana-chan!" Rihan smiled and said nonchalantly. Wakana gave him a sickly look. She had gotten used to Rihan's unexpected visits.

"You're looking well this morning." Rihan said. "Do you want something to eat, Wakana-chan?"

Wakana imagined the sight of food, and began throwing up again. Rihan couldn't help but laugh. It reminded him the first time his father took him out drinking when he was really young.

When Wakana was finally done, she went to the kitchen to get some water. "Here, Wakana-chan." Rihan handed her a cup. "Drink some tea." Wakana eyed him suspiciously. "It's just tea. I promise, Wakana-chan." Rihan explained, trying hard not to laugh. Wakana cautiously sipped the tea. After determining that it was actually was tea, she sat down and drank it in silence. She looked around. "Why is there food here?"

"Oh, I got you some food." Rihan said.

"You got me food?"Rihan nodded as he turned off the TV. Wakana was confused. First he tricked her into drinking alcohol, then he helps her get some food. Rihan was definitely a mystery to her. "Y-you really didn't have to do that, Rihan-san." Wakana said, blushing."I know, Wakana-chan. I just wanted to help out a pretty girl." he said, which made Wakana blush more._ 'She makes it so easy to tease her.'_ Rihan thought.

There was a pregnant pause in the room until Rihan asked, "So what's the plan for today, Wakana-chan?"

Wakana paused for a moment, but then just shrugged.

"What's wrong, Wakana-chan?" Rihan asked. "You were getting better yesterday."

"Gomen, Rihan-san." Wakana said. "But I still need to find a job." She shook her head from the depressing thoughts. "It's only been a few days. I'll find one eventually." Rihan was surprised. This girl was still so optimistic after everything that happened to her. Wakana is definitely different that most girls. Many would've given up by now. Wakana reached for the teapot, but accidentally knocked down her cup. She watched as her cup fell from the table. It would've had shattered to pieces, but Rihan caught it just before it hit the ground.

"You're really clumsy, aren't you?" Rihan asked.

Wakana blushed in embarrassment. "Er, thank you, Rihan-san." Rihan placed the cup on the table and poured tea in it. "Actually, that's the whole reason why I can't get a job." Wakana explained. "No one wants to hire a clumsy person who keeps breaking everything."

"Oh, yeah." Rihan started. "About that…"

* * *

><p><em>"Hey, old man," Rihan said as he entered his father's room.<em>

_"Oh, Rihan, where have you been? Kubinashi and __Kejōrō__ are going crazy looking for you." Nurarihyon asked while smoking his pipe._

_"I was staying at a friend's house." Rihan said._

_"Is this friend a girl?" his father asked, smirking._

_"Well, yes__, but I'm not doing the things your thinking about." Rihan said._

_"Why not?" Nurarihyon asked. "It's about time you get yourself back in the market."_

_Rihan sighed. _'Here we go again.'_ Ever since Yamabuki left, his father had been very foul when any subject pertaining to his ex-wife came up. "That wife of yours left you because she put her own personal issues ahead of her own marriage. Instead of talking things through with her husband, she just left." he reasoned."Well, my son deserves someone better than that coward!"_

_Rihan sighed. "Old man?" Rihan asked. "I didn't really come here to talk about Yamabuki."_

_"Oh, then what do you want?" Nurarihyon asked, calming down. _

_"Well, I have a favor to ask."_

_"Go on."_

_"Well, this girl, the human girl whose house I'm staying in, she needs a job."_

_"What the hell am I suppose to do? Everyone I know that's hiring hates me because I keep stealing from them."_

_"Actually, I was wondering if we could hire her here."_

_"Here? The Main House? The place where the Nura Clan stays?"_

_"Yes, but only at certain area. That way the yokai can still roam freely without being discovered."_

_Nurarihyon eyed his son suspiciously, then he smirked. "Why are you going through all this trouble for one girl, Rihan?"_

_"Well, um, her parents just died, a-and she's having a hard time getting back on her feet." Rihan explained. "I just feel sorry for the girl."_

_"Yes, I'm sure that's it." his father said sarcastically. "So let me get this straight, you want me to hire a human girl to work in a yokai mansion, without letting her know that there's yokai living in there."_

_"Yes."_

_"No."_

_"Wha-why not?"_

_"Because it's absolutely ridiculous, Rihan!" _

_Rihan thought for a moment. "Okaa-san would've done it."_

_Nurarihyon looked at his son. '_Damn, Rihan. He knows my one weakness is his mother._' He paused for a moment. "Fine! But she's only allowed in the West Wing!"_

_"Fine. Thanks, old man." Rihan said._

* * *

><p>"Are you sure this is okay, Rihan-san?" Wakana asked when Rihan told her about the news.<p>

"Yeah. We've been looking for some help around anyways." Rihan lied.

"I don't know what to say." Wakana said. "Thanks, Rihan-san." she got up from her chair and hugged him. Rihan was taken by surprise by her sudden gesture, but relaxed when he smelled her plum blossom scented hair. _'She smells nice.'_ he thought. "No problem, Wakana-chan." Rihan grinned. "Actually we were hoping if you can stop by sometime this week. We want to show you around before you start working."

* * *

><p>"T-this is where you live?" Wakana asked at the front gate.<p>

"Yeah, but a lot of my relatives live here as well." Rihan explained.

"Rihan!" an old man standing at the front gate yelled. "Quit dawdling and bring your girlfriend here!"

"She's not my girlfriend, old man!" Rihan yelled back. He led them towards the old man. "Wakana-chan, this is my old man. Old man, this is Wakana-chan."

"I'm your father, don't talk to me that way!" Nurarihyon said.

Wakana bowed to the old man. "Ohayou, Nura-sama. Thank you for this opportunity. I'll do my best not to disappoint you!"

Nurarihyon stared at the girl his son brought for a moment. "Want some candy?" he asked in his 'old man voice' and took out some candy from his pocket.

Rihan rolled his eyes. "Er, no thanks." Wakana said.

"You don't have to call me 'Nura-sama', it's too formal. Call me Oji-san. You might as well get used to saying that now." he said. Wakana looked confused but nodded. Rihan rolled his eyes again.

"Oh, by the way, I wanted to apologize for breaking your family vase." Wakana said.

"What family vase?" Nurarihyon asked.

Rihan cleared his throat. "We should probably get going. A lot of ground to cover." he said, changing the subject. Wakana gave him a questioning look. "He's an old man. He forgets." Rihan lied.

"Okay, Wakana," Nurarihyon started, "you will be working in the West Wing." He led the couple to the west side of the mansion. "Our, uh, relatives rarely goes there, but it still needs to be kept in tip top shape." he began talking about each section or room as they were walking.

"I didn't know you had such a big family, Rihan-san." Wakana said.

"Uh, yeah. Well, there's a lot you don't know about me, Wakana-chan." Rihan said.

"Like what?" she asked to much curiosity.

"Why should I tell you?" Rihan smirked.

"Why not? It's not fair Rihan-san. You already know all that needs to be known about me." she reasoned.

Rihan opened his mouth to answer, but his father interrupted. "Wakana are you listening? Rihan stop distracting the girl!" To be honest, he was getting tired of hearing his son's flirtations.

"Now Wakana, I have to ensure our relatives' privacy, so I ask that you stay strictly in the West Wing."

"Hai, Oji-san."

"You will working on cleaning, laundry, and doing dishes, understand?"

"Hai."

"Rihan where are your manners?" Nurarihyon asked his son. "Go get the lady a drink." Rihan sighed and Wakana giggled.

"What would you like to drink Wakana?" Nurarihyon asked.

"Some sake?" Rihan asked. "She's quite the alcoholic, old man." he joked.

"That's not true!" Wakana motioned Rihan to stop. "Rihan-san tricked me!" she blushed at remembering the embarrassing moment. Rihan laughed.

Nurarihyon frowned. _'Why is my son getting under aged girls drunk instead of taking care of the Nura Clan?' _

"I would just like some water, please." Wakana said.

"And get me one while you're at it." Nurarihyon said.

"Alright, alright. Jeez." Rihan headed towards the kitchen. "I'll be right back."

Nurarihyon gestured Wakana for the continuation of the tour. "Now that my useless son is out of the way, I'd like to ask you some questions."

"Oh, um, okay Oji-san." Wakana said.

"How long have you known my son?"

"A couple of days." Wakana answered, uncertain why he was asking these questions.

"Oh, that short. He seems to have taken a liking to you." Nurarihyon said. Wakana blushed. "And it seems like you like him too." Wakana blushed even more. Nurarihyon was happy. It's the first time he's seen his son actually interested a woman since Yamabuki. Maybe he can still see his son find happiness before he dies! "Though he's still in denial about moving on from his previous marriage."

Wakana looked up. "Oh, her name was Yamabuki, right?"

"So, he told you about that too. Seems like you guys are getting close." Nurarihyon said. _'Could this be the woman who will help Rihan open his heart again?' _he thought."Well, can't do anything 'til he sees it himself." he sighed and continued the tour.

* * *

><p><em>CRASH<em>

"Gomen nasai!"

* * *

><p>"Second Commander!" Kejōrō ran out of the kitchen to Rihan.<p>

"Yo!" Rihan said, casually smoking a pipe. "What's up?"

"Second Commander, she has got to go!" Kejōrō yelled. Somehow, Rihan knew who she was talking about. "So far, she had broken 30 cups, 64 bowls, and 127 plates!"

Since she looked human enough, Kejōrō had been one of the few yokai allowed to enter the West Wing while Wakana was working.

"Aw come on, Kino." Rihan said. "It's not that bad!"

"Not that bad?" she cried. "She's destroying the whole West Wing!"

"Well-" Rihan was interrupted with a loud noise.

"Gomen nasai!"

Suddenly the Supreme Commander can out of his room. "What's with all the noise?"

"Supreme Commander," Kejōrō started, "Tell your son that his friend has to go!"

"Hey," Rihan said standing up. "She just needs to get used to working here. She'll eventually get better."

"By the time that happens, the whole mansion will be in ruins!"

"But she's my friend."

"I'm not telling you to stop being friends with her, I'm telling you to fire her!"

"Well, I don't wanna!"

"Well, you have to!"

Nurarihyon interrupted their fight. "Now, now. This can all be settled in a simple vote."

"I vote she stays." Rihan said.

"I vote she goes." Kejōrō said.

They waited for Nurarihyon's input. He thought for a moment. _If she stays, Rihan will get to spend more time with her. Not to mention he'd stay in the mansion and Kubinashi will finally stop annoying me about his disappearances. Actually, since he met Wakana, Rihan has been staying in one place for more than a week. And there's no battle or war going on! He never even acted like this when he was married! But, she does break a lot of things. This will cause a lot of financial damage.' _ This was a hard decision. _'This is the last time I hire a human.'_

"Sorry, Rihan." his father said. "Kejōrō's right. She's making too much damage."

Rihan was about to protest when Wakana walked out of the kitchen. "Oh, Kejōrō-chan." she said smiling. "I finished washing all the dishes."

Kejōrō smiled. "Okay, why don't you take some time off." she turned back to Rihan. "You brought her here, now make her leave!" she whispered and left.

"Hai, Kejōrō-chan." Wakana said as she watched her leave. The she noticed Rihan and Nurarihyon. "Oh, Rihan-san and Oji-san you came just in time." She motioned the two to follow her to the kitchen.

The two were greeted by an aroma of delicious foods. "I wanted to properly thank you guys for hiring me, so I made you dinner. I'm finally starting to feel like myself again." This made Rihan frown more. _'How am I suppose to fire her after she made us dinner?'_ Wakana noticed Rihan's frown and asked, "Rihan-san, what's wrong?"

"Uh, it's nothing Wakana-chan." Rihan said with a fake smile.

"Wow, Wakana, this looks great!" Nurarihyon said as he began eating. "It's delicious too!"

"Thanks. I learned a lot at the restaurant." Wakana.

"Restaurant?" Nurarihyon asked.

"Yes, my family owned a restaurant. When I break too much things, Okaa-san would send me to the kitchen to keep Otou-san company while he cooks. He taught me how to cook." Wakana she forgot to bring napkins and left to get some more.

Rihan tried some of her food. To be honest, it was the best thing Rihan ever eaten. It seemed to have melted into his mouth, allowing him of taste all the flavors. Suddenly Rihan got an idea and looked at his father.

"What?" Nurarihyon asked said.

"Wakana-chan is a really good cook, isn't she?" Rihan said

Nurarihyon knew what his son was thinking. "Oh no, Rihan. We've already tried letting her work here, but it isn't working out. End of discussion."

"But aren't you tired of eating Setsura's chilled foods all the time?"

"But we've eaten at restaurants too."

"Why go to restaurants for food when you can have a someone cook you delicious food at home?'

Nurarihyon sighed. His son can be very lazy sometimes. "The answer is no, Rihan!"

Wakana came back. "Is everything okay? I heard yelling." Rihan frowned.

"Actually Wakana-chan, things aren't working out. I'm afraid we have to," Rihan paused and thought for a moment, "Promote you."

"What? Really?" Wakana gleamed.

"Yeah. From now on you'll be the mansion's cook. No more cleaning the dishes for you!" Rihan said.

"Thanks Rihan-san, Oji-san!" Wakana said. "To be honest, I thought I wasn't doing so great."

Nurarihyon glared at his son, but then he sighed. _'He must really like her.'_

* * *

><p>"So you didn't fire her." Kejōrō asked as her eyebrow twitched.<p>

"No." Rihan answered, smoking his pipe.

"Instead, you promoted her."

"Yes."

A vein popped out of her forehead. It took all her energy to not strangle her own leader with her hair. "You do realize Setsura's not going to happy to hear you hired someone to replace her." Rihan thought for a moment. _'Crap, I didn't consider that.'_

She was about to scream at him, but Wakana walked out if the West Wing. It was the end of her work day.

"Kejōrō-chan, did you hear? I got a promotion!" she said.

"Yes, Wakana." She glared and Rihan. "I heard."

Rihan gave her an innocent smile and looked at Wakana. "You ready to go?" Wakana smiled and nodded.

Kejōrō rolled her eyes. _'I can't believe this is happening. This human should not be here at all!'_

" Kejōrō-chan?" Wakana asked. "Can you show me how to make your hair so soft and silky?"

Kejōrō gleamed. "Well of course, Wakana! I'll show you all my tricks!"

Rihan rolled his eyes. "Well, your mood change rather quickly." Rihan muttered. However, Kejōrō heard and gave her leader a glare.

"Come, Wakana. I'll take you away from split-ends-infested male who doesn't deserve my secrets!" Kejōrō said when they left.

Rihan smiled. _'Wakana-chan's making friends.'_

* * *

><p>"I am NOT working with that human girl!" a blue haired woman yelled at Kejōrō.<p>

"Now, Setsura, just give her a chance." Kejōrō said, trying to calm Setsura down.

"Didn't you say she always break things and I can't even freeze her to death?"

"Well, yes but the Second Commander said she is a really good cook."

"…I'm the cook of this house."

"Yes, but-"

"You're giving MY job to a HUMAN GIRL?"

"Well, you see, you have a daughter now, and we thought it would be helpful to take some of your workload off your shoulders so you can spend more time with Tsurara."

"You're telling me that you're 'helping' me by replacing me with some _random clumsy girl_?"

"No-"

"I have been this clan's cook for over 400 years and _THIS _is how they repay me?"

Suddenly Rihan walked in with Wakana. "Yo, Kino and Setsura." Rihan said. "Setsura, this is Wakana-chan. She'll be work-"

"Go to hell you ungrateful bastard!" Setsura yelled and left.

. . .

"Well, Wakana-chan looks like you'll be working without the help of Setsura." Rihan said. "She was suppose of help you settle down and show you where we put the food and stuff but…"

Wakana gave him a confused look.

"I'll help her." Kejōrō volunteered.

"Really? I thought you were hanging out with Kubinashi today."

"We'll hang out some other day. Besides, you're currently short on staff."

"Are you guys dating yet?" Rihan asked bluntly.

Kejōrō blushed at his question. "Of course not!"

"Damn." Rihan said. "Well, the old man and I are betting money on it so hurry up and start dating."

"Rihan!" Kejōrō yelled, hoping he would stop. They both looked at Wakana, who was giving them a confused look.

"Sorry for going off topic, Wakana." Kejōrō said. "Let's get started she said, shooing Rihan out of the kitchen.

* * *

><p>"WE WANT FOOD! WE WANT FOOD! WE WANT FOOD!"<p>

"Where is the food?" Kubinashi asked.

"Apparently Rihan asked the Supreme Commander to hire a human friend to make the food." Kurotabō explained. "She's suppose to help Setsura."

They looked at Setsura sitting in corner. She glared at them. "I refuse to work with some random human stranger." she said flatly and turned herself to face the other direction. The ayakashi sweat dropped.

"You say Rihan has a girlfriend?" Mokugyo asked.

"Not a girlfriend." Kejōrō said, walking in the room with the Supreme Commander. "Just a friend that happened to be a girl."

"Still, to go through all this trouble for just one girl…" Mokugyo said.

"It looks like little Koi-kun has a crush." Hihi said and smiled behind his mask.

"Well, don't mention it in front of him 'cause he'll deny it." Nurarihyon said as he sat down next to Hitotsume.

"Well, it's about time." Hitotsume said. "The Second Commander still needs to provided a heir to the Nura Clan. All that love a mushy stuff comes second."

"Rihan will obviously do what he feels right." Nurarihyon said proudly. "He'll make a baby when he's good and ready. There's no need to rush. We should all wait for him to find happiness. I cannot ask my son to be trapped in a loveless marriage. Even for the Nura Clan."

Hitotsume rolled his one eye. "And you think this girl will be the one?"

Nurarihyon smirked. "There's a good chance she is."

"You wanna make bet?" Hitotsume said, also smirking.

"Ya damn right I do." Nurarihyon said.

"Oooh, I want in on this bet too!" Hihi said, butting in.

The three ayakashi looked at Mokugyo. After a pause, he rolled his eyes. "Fine." he said. The other ayakashi sweat dropped but allowed the clan leaders to have their fun.

Suddenly the door opened and Rihan walked in. "Yo." he said casually. "What's everybody doing?"

There was a pregnant pause before Kejōrō spoke. "R-Rihan-sama, what are you doing here?"

Rihan gave her a confused look. "I live here."

Kubinashi spoke, "I think she means that we usually don't see you at the Main House and we're wondering what made you…"

"It seems something, or _someone,_ is making him stay in the Main House." Nurarihyon said as he smirked. Rihan rolled his eyes. "You don't have to worry about his disappearances for awhile, Kubinashi." his father added.

Kejōrō left to check on Wakana. When she came back, she was carrying a tray of food. "Setsura, I could use some help with these trays. Wakana offered but she shouldn't see a one eyed man, a man without a neck, and another man who was missing a mouth."

Setsura just gave her a "Humph!" then ignored her.

Kejōrō sighed and left to get more trays of food.

When all the food finally arrived, they began eating. As expected, the food was delicious. Even Setsura thought it was delicious, but she didn't say it out loud. Rihan was also enjoying his own food when his father spoke.

"Oi, Rihan." he said. "You were right. Everybody seems to be enjoying Wakana's food. Even Setsura." Setsura heard Nurarihyon's comment and glared at him.

"Koi-kun." Rihan looked at Hihi. "You better hurry up and claim this girl before someone else does. Men like women who can cook." he teased.

"Wait, wait, wait." Hitotsume said. "He shouldn't rush into a relationship to a random woman. You need someone more worthy to be a Nura wife and therefore produce an heir. Does this human girl have any special powers like your mother?"

Rihan sighed. _'These old geezers obviously made some sort of bet.'_

* * *

><p><em>CRASH<em>

Wakana thought she can do the dishes while they ate. _'Oji-san said I don't have to do the dishes anymore, but it seems like a lot for Kejōrō to do. It would be nice to help her.'_ Unfortunately, she keeps breaking the dishes.

Suddenly the door opened and Rihan walked in. "Wakana-chan, you don't really have to do the dishes." he said as he helped her clean up the mess she made.

"I know Rihan-san. But there's so much for just Kejōrō to wash." Wakana smiled. "Hey, do you want to help me? I'll put soap on and you rinse." Rihan smiled and began rinsing the dishes, occasionally picking up glass from another broken dish from the ground.

With the silence between the two, Rihan began to think. _'__ Hitotsume__'s right. I still need to produce an heir.'_ He always thought he would have a family with Yamabuki, but she left him. He wondered what would he say if he ever saw her again. To be honest, he would tell her how disappointed he was. Disappointed that his so called love of his life didn't have faith in their marriage. That she didn't have faith in Rihan. That she didn't have faith in his love for her. She should've know he would never think of her as someone who tied him down. Not that it was her fault, anyways. If she had stayed, she would've found out that the reason they couldn't conceive was because of the curse. Rihan sighed. _'I'm starting to think like the old man.'_ It's been centuries since he saw her. He had thought about getting some girl to create an heir with, but he couldn't do it. He wanted what his father and mother had. A strong, unbreakable love for each other and raising a child together. He can never get that with some baby machine. But at the same time, he's still hung up on his first love. Will he ever find love again?

"Rihan-san?" Wakana asked, interrupting his depressing thoughts. "You're making that frowning face again."

Rihan looked at Wakana. "it's nothing." he said.

Suddenly Wakana brought her hands to Rihan's face and stretched his cheeks. "C'mon, Rihan-san! Smile!" she said.

Rihan was taken by surprise my her actions. Seeing her happy face made him smile too. He then brought his hands and stretched Wakana's cheeks. Wakana's smile widened and stretched Rihan's cheeked harder.

Rihan, unwilling to lose the game of who can stretch the other's cheeks until they give up, stretched harder too. Wakana began to giggle.

Rihan looked at her smiling face. _'She has a cute smile.'_ Before he knew it,Rihan's face began getting closer to Wakana's. Yet, he couldn't stop himself. He was too busy looking at such a happy face. It's been a while since he experienced such happiness. Wakana then noticed that the distance between each other's face was decreasing, but didn't know how to react.

"You two make me sick." Setsura said. "Get a room!"

The two jumped and let go each other's cheeks. Wakana blushed. Rihan looked at her, confused at his actions.

"W-we were doing nothing." Rihan explained.

Setsura rolled her eyes and looked at Wakana. "Stupid girl," Wakana looked up at Setsura. "Apparently, you were able to manage making a meal for this crazy lot, so…."

Rihan smirked. "You have to say it, Setsura."

She glared at him. "So I suppose that…you may work with me."

Wakana gleamed.

"But I will have authority over you!" she yelled.

"Hai, Setsura-san!" Wakana said, smiling. "I won't let you down I promise!

"And stop being so happy!" Setsura yelled and left.

Rihan looked at Wakana, who had a confused look on her face but smiled again. He couldn't help but smile back. Wakana was finally accepted in the Nura Clan's household.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry if it was a boring chapter. I wanted to introduce Wakana to the rest of the characters, but there will be more RihanxWakana moments in later chapters.<strong>

**You can kinda tell I don't really like Yamabuki. I don't downright hate her; I understand the position she was in. I just wished she handled things differently. **

**Thanks for reading and please review!**


	4. Chapter 4 Christmas Eve

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nurarihyon no Mago.**

**Two chapters in one week! I really wanted to get this chapter out before Christmas.**

**Please read and review. I could use some more reviews :(**

**Happiness Comes to Those Who Smile**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

Wakana woke up to a snowy morning. Since Wakana only helped with dinner at the Nura House, she had time to go to school and finish her homework. She got up and dressed in her school uniform and brushed her teeth. Then she went downstairs and was greeted by a certain hanyō watching TV.

"Ohayo, Rihan -san." Wakana said cheerfully. She had gotten used to seeing Rihan in her house from time to time.

"Yo, Wakana-chan." Rihan said. "What's for breakfast?" Since he's been staying at the Main House much more lately, Kejōrō thought it'll be a good idea for him to help out around the house and gave him a list of chores. Rihan, being the lazy man that he is, gave the list to Natto and Sannokuchi to do and casually left the Main House before Kejōrō noticed. Wakana smiled and casually whipped up some steamed rice, miso soup, vegetables, broiled fish, and some tamagoyaki.

Rihan watched amazement as she placed the food in front of him. Surprisingly, she did not break anything. She moved so naturally, like she was a completely different person.

After breakfast, Wakana bid goodbye to Rihan and went to school. Rihan stayed to do the dishes and watched TV afterwards.

* * *

><p>"Ohayo Akira-kun, Kamiko-san!" Wakana said when she saw her friends entering the school campus.<p>

"Ohayo Wakana-chan!" Akira said.

Kamiko nodded her head to Wakana. "Where have you been lately? We only get to see you in school."

"Gomen, I found a new job and I work in the late afternoon." Wakana said.

"A job? Where?" Kamiko asked.

"Rihan-san and his father hired me to work as a cook in their house. It's the Nura Mansion by the market area." Wakana explained.

Akira and Kamiko stopped walking and stared at Wakana with wide eyes. "The Nura Mansion?" they asked.

"Hai." Wakana said with a questioning look. "What's wrong?"

"Haven't you heard Wakana?" Akira asked. "That place is haunted."

"Yeah," Kamiko said. "People say they always see and hear strange things around that mansion."

"W-what?" Wakana yelled. Wakana was terrified of ghosts. When she was little she saw a scary movie that forever scarred her.

"What if yokai lives there?" Akira asked.

"They would want to eat your liver!" Kamiko exclaimed. "Wakana, you need to quit that job!"

"W-wait! We don't know for sure that it's haunted." Wakana said, trying to calm herself down. "Rihan said that a lot of his relatives live there. Maybe that's why people hear a lot of noises there."

"What about the sightings reported by people by the Nura Mansion?"

"T-that can't be possible!" Wakana screamed. '_Okaa-san said ghosts and yokai don't exists! Remember Okaa-san's words! There must be a reasonable explanation!'_

"Well you'd better ask Rihan then." Kamiko said, hearing the bell ring. "We should get to class."

* * *

><p>After school, Wakana said goodbye to her friends and headed for the Nura Mansion.<p>

"Wakana-chan wait!" Akira called out. Wakana turned back to her friends.

"We forgot to tell you that Akira signed us up to be Santa Claus and elf at the mall and take pictures with little kids." Kamiko said. "We have an extra elf costume. Wanna come? It's on Saturday."

"Well, I'll have to ask Oji-san." Wakana said.

"Okay." Kamiko said. "Call us if you don't get eaten by any yokai."

Wakana gulped. _'There's no such this as yokai. Remember Okaa-san's words!'_

* * *

><p>Wakana cautiously walked through the front gate. She was looking at her surrounding when Rihan popped out of nowhere.<p>

"Yo Wakana-chan!" Rihan said.

"AHHHH!" Wakana screamed, taking out the pepper spray from her bag.

Rihan looked at her pepper spray and waited for her to open her eyes and relax.

"Gomen, Rihan-san. You scared me." Wakana said.

"Er, okay Wakana-chan…" he said, still a little confused. He finally got bored in Wakana's house and when strolling around the market area and bumped into Kubinashi, who dragged him back to the Main House to finish his chores. Wakana noticed he was carrying a shovel.

"When you're done, start shoveling over there." Kejōrō said.

Rihan sighed. "Alright, alright. Jeez."

" Konnichiwa, Wakana-chan." Kejōrō said.

"K- Konnichiwa, Kejōrō-chan." Wakana said, still paranoid.

Kejōrō smiled at Wakana and left to finish the laundry, Rihan noticed Wakana was still a little jittery. "What's wrong Wakana-chan?"

"Huh? Oh Rihan-san. I-it's nothing…" Wakana said.

However Rihan wasn't convinced. "Tell me what's wrong." he said sternly.

Wakana gulped. "Well, I-I told Akira-kun and Kamiko-san that I started working here." she said to the listening. "A-and t-they told me that…" Wakana mumbled something Rihan couldn't hear.

"What was that?" Rihan asked.

"...hawn…" she mumbled again.

" I can't hear you Wakana-can. Can you speak up?" Rihan asked.

Wakana gulp some air. "That it's HAUNTED!" she yelled and looked down at her feet.

Rihan couldn't help but smile. "Haunted? Are you scared of ghosts Wakana-chan?"

Wakana blushed and nodded. "And they said yokai live here." she whispered sharply.

"Yokai?" he asked.

"I-it's not true, right?" Wakana asked.

Rihan smiled. "No, it's not true." he lied.

Wakana gave a sigh of relief.

"Although…" Rihan started, "Nah, it can't be."

"W-what is it, Rihan-san?" Wakana asked, afraid of the answer.

Rihan smirked. "Well, now that I think about it, there are some strange happenings around the house."

Wakana gulped. Rihan couldn't help but scare her a little. "Happenings that seem supernatural. As if they were from yokai."

"W-what?"

"Yeah, sometimes you can see strange things or hear noises through the walls."

"Ahhh. No, no, no." Wakana said while covering her ears. "P-please tell me you're joking."

"I wish I could Wakana-chan, but I think your friends are right. I think yokai really do live here." he said, stifling a laugh.

She gave Rihan a look of horror and then whimpered. Rihan laughed.

"Don't worry, Wakana-chan." he said. "I'll protect you from the big, scary and evil yokai."

Wakana looked up at him, surprised at what he said.

"After all, you're my _special_ friend." he said and winked, enjoying the view of the blushing girl.

Wakana was about to speak when the door opened and Setsura walked out.

"Stupid girl, you're late!" she said.

"G-gomen nasai, Setsura-sama!" Wakana said as she and Rihan entered the kitchen.

"I have to pick up some more supplies, but you can get started." Setsura said. "Do NOT break anything!"

"H-Hai, Setsura-sama." Wakana said when Setsura left.

Wakana looked at Rihan. "No offense, Rihan-san. But, I don't think you'd stand a chance against yokai."

"Hmmm? You think so?" Rihan said. He watched Wakana as she began preparing the meal. While waiting for everything to cook, she began making dessert: her homemade donuts . Something Rihan is particularly fond of. He often had to fight with his father for the last one.

(A/N: In the anime, the reason why Rikuo's friends always stayed at his house was because of the yokai aura and Wakana's homemade donuts.)

"I mean yokai are strong with special powers." she explained.

"And you don't think I'm strong ?" Rihan said, thinking about the irony of this conversation. "What if I told you that I can beat the leader of all yokai."

"The leader of all yokai? How?" Wakana asked, putting the food in dishes and placing them in their trays. Kejōrō and Setsura walked in with some new supplies and listened to their conversation. They shot a couple of glares at Rihan, but Wakana doesn't know why.

"Let's just say I was born with certain genes." he said and received another glare from the other two ayakashi. He smiled innocently at them before they left with trays of food. Rihan was about to leave too, but Wakana held on to his sleeve. Rihan looked back at Wakana and gave her a questioning look.

"G-Gomen, Rihan-san. But, could stay with me for awhile?" Wakana said while she blushed.

Rihan frowned. "Does yokai frighten you that much?" he asked softly. Wakana nodded.

Rihan gave her a reassuring, yet weak smile, "Then there's nothing to be afraid of," he said, "because yokai don't exist." he lied, no longer seeing a scared Wakana as 'fun'.

Wakana gave him a confused look. For some reason, she had a feeling he was keeping something from her.

"Hai, Rihan-san." she said, trying hard to agree with him. "But could you still stay with me?"

Rihan smiled and sat back down. He was getting tired of Hitotsume and Hihi trying to persuade him "claim" or "not claim" Wakana anyways. _'Damn geezers need to mind their own damn business.'_ Rihan thought to himself as Wakana placed a tray of food and a bottle of sake in front of Rihan. After she took her donuts out to cool, she ate her dinner with Rihan on the table.

"Rihan-san?" Wakana asked.

"Yes Wakana-chan?" Rihan said while pouring some sake into a cup.

"I was wondering if I could have Saturday off." she said.

Rihan put down his bowl of rice."Huh? How come?" he asked.

"Akira-kun and Kamiko-san asked me to go to the mall dressed as an elf with them and take pictures with kids on Christmas Eve." Wakana explained. "It will be the first Christmas without Okaa-san and Otou-san, so I figured…"

Rihan gave her a warm smile. "Sure." he said.

"Are you sure?" Wakana asked.

"Yeah, the old man will understand." Rihan said. "You shouldn't be working during the holidays anyways." Rihan, being born into a traditional Japanese family, never really celebrated the Western-adopted holiday. He figure Wakana will receive more Christmas Spirit with her friends rather than moping around missing her parents.

Wakana smiled. "Arigatou, Rihan-san!"

Rihan smiled and reached for the plate of delicious donuts cooling on the windowsill.

"Rihan-san, those are for everyone to share." Wakanasaid while trying stop him.

He took the plate off the windowsill, pick one donut up, and ate it.

"No, Rihan-san!" Wakana stood up and took the plate of donuts from him. Unfortunately, Rihan also stood up, causing Wakana to guard the plate protectively. She turned her back to Rihan, not allowing him any access. "Don't make me drop them!" she said, knowing her clumsiness could make the plate tip over and cause the donuts to fall on the floor.

Suddenly, Rihan got another idea. He wrapped his arms around Wakana and kissed her on her cheek. Wakana's face instantly turned bright red. Rihan smirked and took the plate from her hands when she was distracted. He then exited the room and slid the door shut. Wakana, regaining her senses, ran to the door and slid it back open. But, Rihan already disappeared.

* * *

><p>"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T HAVE THEM!" Setsura yelled at Wakana<p>

"Gomen nasai, Setsura-sama!" Wakana cried. "I tried to stop him!"

"NOW WHAT ARE WE GOING TO SERVE?" Setsura asked.

"I'm making a new batch! I just need some more time!" Wakana said.

Out of frustration, Setsura picked up a chair and threw it through the fragile sliding door. _'Why can't I freeze this girl!'_

* * *

><p>Kubinashi was taking a walk after a hearty dinner when he noticed the Second Commander snacking on something while sitting on the sakura tree.<p>

"Yo Kubinashi." Rihan said as Kubinashi walked towards him. "Want a donut?"

Kubinashi politely declined. "Your loss." Rihan said.

There was a long silence. "Kubinashi." Rihan said. He looked at his leader. "Can someone love more than one person?" he asked.

Kubinashi thought for a moment. He didn't know the answer to his question. The only person he ever thought about love and marriage committed suicide. Before he answered, Rihan asked, "You don't know, do you?"

Rihan sighed. "Poor, poor Kino. He has absolutely no idea." he said to himself so Kubinashi wouldn't hear.

"Is this about that human girl you brought?" Kubinashi asked.

Rihan nodded. There was another long silence when Rihan spoke again, "She's afraid of yokai."

Kubinashi looked at him with a confused look.

"Can a woman truly love the person she is afraid of?" he asked.

Kubinashi looked back at the ground. "No." he answered.

"I thought so." Rihan replied sadly.

* * *

><p>It was around noon when Kejōrō told Rihan that Wakana was waiting to speak to him at the front gate. When he reached there, he noticed Kamiko was also with her.<p>

"Y-Yamabuki-sama?" Kejōrō asked.

"Why does everybody keeps calling me that?" Kamiko yelled. "It's KAMIKO!"

Kejōrō sweat dropped but apologized for mistaking her for someone else and left.

"Yo, Wakana-chan." Rihan said. "I thought you'd be at the mall by now."

Wakana paused for a moment, but Kamiko pushed her towards Rihan. "Ask him!" she whispered loudly.

Rihan gave them a questioning look. "Rihan-san," Wakana started. "can I ask you for a favor?"

"What kind of favor?" Rihan asked.

Wakana looked at her friend, who gestured her to hurry up. "Well, you see…"

* * *

><p><em>Wakana arrived at Akira's house. They all agreed to meet at his house before they go to the mall. She rang the doorbell. The door opened and revealed Kamiko. "Ohayo, Kamiko-san." Wakana greeted.<em>

_"Ohayo." She said back. "We have a problem." Before Wakana can ask what, Kamiko motioned her to step inside the house. When stepping inside, she heard a few coughs from the living room couch. She looked and saw Akira laying down with a blanket and a bright red nose._

_"Wakana-chaaaan." he said with a sore throat. Wakana went by his side and felt his forehead. _

_"You have a really high fever!" she said._

_"I want some of your special chicken noodle soup." he said._

_"Hai, Akira-kun." Wakana replied. "You should sleep in your bed; you'll warmer there." _

_Kamiko helped Akira to his room. When she got out, she saw Wakana already getting started on his soup._

_"What are we going to do, Wakana-chan?" she asked. "We need a Santa Claus."_

_"Akira can't be Santa today. He'll get all the kids sick." Wakana said._

_"I have an idea." Kamiko said._

* * *

><p>Nura Rihan, son of the Supreme Commander, Nurarihyon, and the noblewoman Yohime, who possessed the power to heal any illness, the Second Commander of the of the Nura Clan, and the creator of the matoi technique, reduced to a Santa Claus suit.<p>

"Santa, I was really good this year so this Christmas, I want a toy fire truck with sirens, a video game, a new puppy…." a 4 year-old boy rambled on his lap.

Occasionally, Rihan would zone out when a child told him his/her Christmas list. _'Kids these days always want so much stuff.' _The only reason why he agreed to do this was because he couldn't say no to Wakana's pleading face. He scratched his chin, which was itched by the white beard, and adjusted his hat .

Rihan gave a fake smile and said. "Well, because you've been a good boy, Santa will try to get you everything on this list." Then he smiled into the camera and told the boy and his mother to go to Kamiko, where she will give them their picture and some peppermint candy canes. Next was a little girl. Wakana helped her get on Rihan's lap.

"Santa, this year I want a dollhouse that's bigger than the one my best friend has." she said.

"Well-" Rihan was interrupted.

"And I want a Barbie doll that has her own car, that's pink." he little girl said.

_'And they're a little rude.'_ Rihan thought. "Well, you have to try to be a _nice_ girl so Santa can give you want you want.

"Humph." the girl said as the camera snapped a picture. Rihan looked at the long line of children waiting to sit on Santa's lap. This is going to be a long day.

And it was. For hours Rihan had been listening to children whine about what they expected to see on Christmas morning. By the time they finished, Rihan was in serious need of some alcohol. After changing out of the ridiculous Santa suit, he waited for Wakana by a store.

Rihan notice a few flower barrettes in a glass jewelry box. There were three jeweled flower barrettes: a cherry blossom one, a Japanese yellow mountain rose one, and a plum blossom. Rihan asked the store clerk how much one of them was.

(A/N: You should all know what two of these flowers mean to Rihan by now. The other one will be explained later in the story.)

After paying for the barrette, he saw Wakana standing by the restrooms, looking for him. Kamiko already left to check on her boyfriend.

"Wakana-chan!" he called out as he walked towards her.

Wakana smiled. "Thanks for coming on such short notice, Rihan-san."

"It was nothing." Rihan lied as they left the mall. "I had a lot of fun."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Kejōrō, Kubinashi, and Kurotabō watched the two at a safe distance in their disguises. After Kubinashi told them that Rihan was showing some feelings he had towards the human girl, Kejōrō decided that they should follow them.<p>

"He bought something from that store!" Kejōrō said.

"He bought it?" Kurotabō asked. "He didn't steal it? That means it's something serious."

"Well, it's gotta be something expensive coming from that store." Kejōrō said in excitement.

_'Something expensive? Rihan isn't allowed to carry that much money.'_ Kubinashi thought. Suddenly he checked his pockets. Empty.

"Damn it, Rihan!" Kubinashi yelled.

Kejōrō and Kurotabō sweat dropped. "You should really find a better place to keep your money." Kejōrō said.

* * *

><p>Rihan was walking Wakana home in the snow, unaware that he was being followed by three Nura Clan members. He looked at Wakana, who had a smile on her face. "You made a lot of kids happy today, Rihan-san." she said.<p>

"Yeah, well, most of them." Rihan said, remembering the rude little girl. Just then, snowflakes began to fall from the sky. "Look Rihan-sama, it's snowing." Wakana said. Rihan watched as she stuck out her tongue and tasted the falling snowflakes. Rihan smiled. _'She's so cheerful.'_

"Wakana-chan." he said. Wakana stuck her tongue back into her mouth and looked at Rihan.

"Hai, Rihan-san." she said.

"I got you a present ." Rihan said.

"A present?" Wakana asked as Rihan took out a small box.

"Open it." he said.

Wakana looked at the box. "Gomen, Rihan-san. I didn't get you anything."

Rihan smiled. "That's okay, Wakana-chan. You didn't have to. Open it." he said again.

Wakana opened the box and saw a barrette. It was very beautiful. Little plum blossoms of different sizes were scattered on the barrette. The flower petals sparkled in the moonlight. Wakana traced the jeweled flowers with her finger. "Gomen, Rihan-san. But, I can't accept this."

Rihan gave her a disappointed look. "You don't like it?"

"No, I-I like it very much." she said. "But it's way too expensive. I can't accept anything so expensive."

"It wasn't too expensive, Wakana-chan." Rihan explained. "I barely spent any of my money."

"But-"

"Wakana-chan, I bought this for you. I really want you to have it." Rihan said.

Wakana blushed at Rihan's statement. "Arigato, Rihan-san."

Rihan smiled and gently took the barrette from her soft hands. He brushed some of her hair with his hand and clipped the barrette on. Rihan smiled at his accomplishment. Wakana blushed but smiled back. They began walking again as Wakana traced the flowers with her fingers.

* * *

><p>"Awww." Kejōrō said as she watched the scene.<p>

The male ayakashi sweat dropped.

"Don't you think they make a cute couple?" Kejōrō asked.

"Y-yeah. I guess." Kurotabō said, trying to maintain his coolness.

Kubinashi looked at the couple from afar. "Rihan," he said. "has found happiness."

* * *

><p><strong>In the anime, Wakana told Kana that not all yokai are evil. So, I decided to go into more depth with it and let Rihan teach later in the story.<strong>

**Merry**** Christmas everyone and thanks for reading!**

**Please, please, please, please review!**


	5. Chapter 5 Safety

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nurarihyon no Mago.**

**I've been correcting some errors on the previous chapters so sorry for the story alerts. I'm a multi-tasker so it kinda screws up my writing. Some people found some mistakes and I wanted to fix them.**

**There's a lot of technical terms in this chapter, mostly based on the manga or anime. I suggest looking up a few things when you read something you don't understand. Start with the Nurarihyon No Mago Wiki.  
><strong>

**Thank you for all the reviews! I really appreciate it guys!**

**Happiness Comes to Those Who Smile**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

Rihan was chillin' at the at his room after a feast at dinner. Wakana left early because she had some homework to finish. Suddenly, he heard voices outside his room yelling, "Fire, fire, fire!" Rihan's eyes shot open and he ran outside.

"Rihan-sama, there's a fire at the West Wing!" a small yokai said. They ran to the West Wing and saw it engulfed into flames. Setsura and Kappa were trying to put out the flames with ice and water. The other yokai carried buckets of water. It took awhile, but they eventually put out the fire. Luckily, no one was hurt.

After determining that the fire was completely put out, they observed the damages.

"It looks like the fire started in the kitchen." Kurotabō stated.

"Could it have started at the stove?" a small yokai asked.

"Impossible!" Setsura yelled. "I remember distinctively checking the stove before leaving!"

"It's true." Kejōrō vouched. "I saw her."

There was a moment of silence until Kubinashi spoke. "Could this be the work of a yokai?" he pondered.

The other yokai looked at him. "This was no accident. The fire appeared out of nowhere and spread so quickly." he explained. "Could somebody be targeting the Nura Clan?"

* * *

><p>Rihan sat on the sakura tree thinking about the fire that happened earlier. He reviewed the things that happened. Unknown cause at the fire, it spread very fast without anything to cause it to do so, and even with the work of Setsura and Kappa, the fire was really strong. <em>'This doesn't make sense.' <em>Rihan thought. _'But more importantly,'_ Rihan's frown deepened, _'If Wakana-chan hadn't left early, she would've…'_

"Rihan." Rihan looked down and saw Kubinashi.

"Oi, Kubinashi." Rihan greeted. "How's the investigation going?"

Kubinashi frowned. "Actually we found out that these mysterious fires are happening all over the city."

"Hmmm." Rihan said as he listened to Kubinashi.

"They mostly happened in family owned business, most of which were restaurants. Whoever did this probably thought they could use the stove to cover up their intentional fires."

Rihan nodded, understanding what Kubinashi said.

Kubinashi paused for a moment then spoken slower. "One of the restaurants belonged to," Kubinashi paused again. "Wakana's family."

Rihan didn't talk for a moment for he was digesting what Kubinashi just said. "What are you saying, Kubinashi?"

He gulped before answering. "I'm saying her parents' deaths was not an accident. They were murdered."

Rihan eyes widened. "So if Wakana-chan avoided the attack on her parents…"

"Whoever did this may be targeting Wakana." Kubinashi finished his sentence.

Rihan jumped down from the tree. "Get Karasu Tengu." he told Kubinashi.

"Hai." Kubinashi said.

"And Kappa. Get me Kappa too." Rihan added.

Kubinashi nodded. "But there's more, Rihan."

Rihan looked at him, awaiting more terrible news. "Apparently, these happenings also occurred in other places too, including Shiga."

"Shiga? That's where Mt. Nejireme is." Rihan said.

Kubinashi nodded and explained. "We should go there and ask for Gyūki -san's help on investigating who is targeting the Nura Clan."

"And Wakana-chan." Rihan said softly. Kubinashi nodded in agreement. "We leave in the tomorrow."

* * *

><p>"T-there was a fire?" Wakana asked Rihan at the front gate. She just arrived at the Nura Household when Rihan greeted her at the front gate and told her the news. "Was anybody hurt?"<p>

Rihan shook his head and Wakana sighed in relief. It pained him to be unable to tell her what really happened to her parents. She deserved to know. But, if he told her, she will know everything about him and his 'relatives'. He remembered when Wakana told him that she was terribly afraid of yokai. _'That would be the end of our friendship.' _Rihan thought. _'Wakana-chan would never want to see me ever again.'_

"Rihan-san?" Wakana asked. Rihan ended his depressing thoughts and looked at the human girl.

"Where will I work now?" Wakana asked. _'Do I need to find another job?'_

Rihan gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry Wakana-chan. We have another kitchen in the East Wing." He led Wakana to the East Wing. "It's a much smaller kitchen, but it'll do for now. Kejōrō and Setsura already cleared everything up for you to start work. It'll take awhile to rebuild the West Wing so stay in the East Wing for now."

"Hai, Rihan-san." Wakana said as she entered the smaller kitchen and saw Kejōrō and Setsura already there. "Ohayo, Kejōrō-chan, Setsura-san."

"Ohayo, Wakana-chan." Kejōrō said.

"So you heard what happened at the West Wing?" Setsura asked, skipping the greeting.

"Hai." Wakana said. "I'm glad nobody was hurt. Is there anything I can help with?"

"No we're almost done. We just need to move a few boxes." Kejōrō explained. She and Setsura left carry boxes.

After they left, Rihan spoke, "Wakana-chan, I have to leave for a couple of days for ,uh, business."

Wakana gave her a questioning look. "What kind of business?"

"Uh, family business." Rihan replied.

"Oh. How long will you be gone?" she asked.

"I don't know yet." Rihan said. Wakana looked down in disappointment. Then Rihan smirked. "Are you gonna miss me Wakana-chan?"

Wakana blushed and sputtered. She traced the jeweled flowers on her barrette with her finger. Rihan smiled and pulled the girl closer to his body. "I won't be gone long." he said reassuringly. Wakana blushed harder but pulled away, feeling slightly uncomfortable. Rihan grinned. _'She's so cute.'_

Rihan slid the door opened. "If you need anything, ask my old man."

"H-hai." Wakana said, still blushing.

"I'll see you later, Wakana-chan." He laughed and left.

* * *

><p>"Students!" the sensei said firmly to his students. "Don't forget to have your permissions slips sighed before our overnight field trip on Mt. Nejireme to study the history of yokai! It'll be very exciting!"<p>

A student raised her hand. "Sensei, don't you think your obsession of yokai is going too far?"

Their teacher gave them an offended look. "N-nonsense! Yokai are a part of Japanese culture and we should study it as much as possible!"

The students sweat dropped. "I think sensei is using this field trip as an excuse for his personal research." one student whispered to another.

"No more talking!" the teacher said as he heard his students. "It's time to start class."

After class, Wakana packed her things in her book bag when Akira and Kamiko approached her.

"Wakana-chan, are you going to the field trip?" Akira asked.

"I don't think so Akira-kun. I'm really scared of yokai." Wakana explained.

Her sensei heard and intruded in the conversation. "Wakana-chan, you have to go! It'll be fun!"

Akira and Wakana sweat dropped.

"That's funny. I don't recall inviting you in our little circle." Kamiko said.

Their teacher ignored Kamiko. "Wakana-chan, this is an opportunity for you to overcome your fears."

Wakana sweat dropped. "I don't think I want to do that sen-"

Then Akira interrupted. "But Wakana-chaaaan!" he whined. "We never get to hang out anymore! You always have to work right after school!"

Kamiko's eyebrow twitched. Her boyfriend can be somewhat childish at times.

"And we'll be staying at an inn on Mt. Nejireme. " her sensei explained. "There are hot springs."

"Eh?" Akira said. "Hot springs? Wakana-chan you have to go! It'll relax you after working so hard!"

Wakana sweat dropped. "I don't-"

"Wakana-chaaan!" Akira whined again.

Kamiko smacked her boyfriend at the back of his head. "Akira, man up!" She looked at Wakana. "C'mon Wakana. Don't you wanna go to the hot springs with us? It'll be fun. Besides, yokai doesn't exist." Their sensei heard and was about to speak but Kamiko glared at him.

Wakana thought for a moment. "O-okay." she said in defeat.

"Great!" their sensei said. "Just have your parents sign that permission slip."

Akira gasped and Kamiko glared at their sensei.

"ARE YOU STUPID?" she yelled at her sensei. He finally figured out what he said. "G-gomen!" he said to Wakana and the raging Kamiko.

"But, I still need someone to sign the permission slip." he said. "You're still a minor. Have someone who you consider a guardian to sign it and put their contact information next to it." He looked at the still very angry Kamiko. "Uh, gotta go!"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile Kappa and the Sanbagarasu watched Wakana from the rooftops of buildings.<p>

"It looks like we'll be meeting up with Rihan-sama." Kuroumaru, the eldest of the Sanbagarasu, said.

Ever since discovering that Wakana was being targeted, the Second Commander ordered them to keep a watchful eye on Wakana. If any fires happened Kappa would have to put them out while two of the Sanbagarasu goes after the culprit, and the other one goes to retrieve help. None of them wanted to take any chances of their leader's love interest.

* * *

><p>Wakana entered the East Wing of the Nura Mansion.<p>

"Oi, Wakana." Nurarihyon greeted. "I forgot you work at the East Wing now."

"Ohayo, Oji-san." Wakana said.

"So, how are you getting situated? I know it's a lot smaller than the one you're used to." he asked.

"I'm fine. As long as I have a kitchen." Wakana smiled then paused. "Oji-san?"

Nurarihyon looked at her.

"I was wondering if you can sign my permission slip." Wakana said."You see, there's this field trip I want to go to but I don't anyone to sign it. Sensei said I need someone I consider as my guardian and-"

Nurarihyon nodded. "Sure Wakana-chan. You're practically like a daughter to me." he said. _'Though, you'll actually be my daughter in the near future.'_ Wakana took out the permission slip from her bag and Nurarihyon signed it and wrote his contact information next to his fake signature.

"Arigato Oji-san." Wakana said.

* * *

><p>"Yo, Gyūki-san." Rihan greeted. Rihan settled Gyūki Mansion a day before. Along with Rihan, Kubinashi sat with them. Gyūki was expecting them because Karasu Tengu went ahead of them and informed Gyūki of the emergency meeting. "How's the investigation?"<p>

Gozumaru and Mezumaru stepped out of the shadows. "This ayakashi is most likelyGotokuneko, a cat yokai who hangs around fireplaces, or in this case, stoves." Gozumaru said.

Rihan recognized the named. "Wasn't he a member of the Bakeneko Clan?"

"Hai. But he was banished by the Supreme Commander and the Ryōta Neko when he started fires and began killing both humans and yokai. At first, he did it to get rid of the competition of his leader's yokai restaurant, but obsession of burning down places grew. " Gozumaru said.

Then Gyūki spoke. "This happened when you were still a child. His fires were out of control and Ryōta could no longer control him."

Rihan nodded. "If he was banished, he may hold a grudge against the Nura Clan. And he's been attacking family because he felt his family, or clan, had betrayed him."

"So he's been setting fires and was getting closer to the Main House from Shiga." Gyūki said in deep thought.

"Gyūki-san." Kubinashi said. "We have someone who actually avoided his attack on her family. Is it possible that Gotokuneko would go after her next."

Gyūki thought for a moment. "Looking at what has happened in Shiga, he would want the entire families to burn. He left no survivors. The likelihood of him going after her is high." he explained.

"He attacked the Main House during Wakana's shift. He thought he could kill two birds with one stone." Kubinashi explained. "Luckily, Wakana left early that day."

"And I have Wakana-chan under the Nura Clan's security." Rihan said, wishing he could be with her right now.

"We must find Gotokuneko before he gets another chance to attack the Nura Clan." Gyūki said. The ayakashi nodded before leaving.

"Rihan." Gyūki said. Rihan looked at him and dismissed the other yokai in the room.

"Yes, Gyūki-san?" Rihan said.

"I've heard rumors that you've met girl." Gyūki explained.

"Well, I've met many girls-"

"Is this girl the one who Gotokuneko plans to kill?" Gyūki interrupted.

"Hai." he said softly.

"Do you have any feelings towards this girl?" Gyūki asked.

Rihan paused for a moment. "I don't know. Maybe..."

"Rihan, I know your father wouldn't tell you this, but the Nura Clan is expecting you to marry someone who can bare a suitable heir." Gyūki explained. Rihan looked down. "Your mother had the ability to heal any illness. That ability was passed down to you. What can this woman contribute to the Nura bloodline?"

Rihan paused for a moment. "She's just an ordinary human." he replied.

"I see." Gyūki disappointingly said.

* * *

><p>"Students." Wakana's sensei said. "This is Adashibara-sensei." He gestured to a small man with glasses. "He's a professor and a researcher of yokai." The professor began to generally talk yokai. First he took them to Umewakamaru's Shrine. He explained the story of how the shrine was built as an attempt to stop Umewakamaru from rampaging. <em>'R-rampaging?' <em>Wakana gulped. _'I shouldn't have come. This is really scary.'_ She followed the group to other yokai sites on the mountain like the Ushigakure Cave and the One-Eyed Cedar. Eventually, Wakana plugged her ears with her fingers and tried to stop listening. By the time they reached Togyunobo, it was already dark.

"Students, we will be staying here for tonight. Dinner will be served at 6:30. After dinner, you may all try the hot springs." their sensei said.

"Hai!" the class said.

"Wakana." Kamiko said. "It's two people per room. Wanna share a room with me?"

"Hai, Kamiko-san." Wakana said. She was glad to share a room with the strongest girl in their school.

"Eh? B-but Kamiko-chan." Akira said with big watery eyes.

"It's a school trip, Akira. I obviously can't share a room with a boy. Idiot." Kamiko said.

"K-Kamiko-chan…" Akira said while he watched his girlfriend leave with Wakana.

The other students watched and sweat dropped. "He's too attached." one student said.

* * *

><p>"Kubinashi." Rihan said as he and his right hand man walked down the steps of Mt. Nejireme.<p>

"Yes, Rihan." Kubinashi said. His leader was really quiet after he left him with Gyūki.

"Do you think Wakana-chan is special?" Rihan said.

Kubinashi stopped. He didn't know why Rihan was asking him what he feels about this girl. Before he answered, Kuroumaru flew from the sky and landed in front of them. "Rihan-sama. Kubinashi-san." he greeted.

"What are you doing here? Aren't you looking after Wakana-chan? Did something happen? Is Wakana-chan okay?" Rihan asked in panic.

"She was not attacked, Rihan-sama. She's here for a class field trip overnight." he reported.

"A field trip?" Rihan said.

"They're staying at the Togyunobo." he said.

Rihan thought for a moment. "Kubinashi." he said. "You in the mood for some hot springs?"

* * *

><p>After dinner, Kamiko and Wakana went back to their room. Wakana looked through her back bag and realized something was missing. She took everything out in panic.<p>

"Wakana-chan, let's go to the hot spring." Kamiko said.

"Hai. You got ahead, Kamiko-san." Wakana said shuffling through her stuff. "I'll meet you there." Kamiko left for the hot springs. _'Where is it?'_ Wakana thought. _'It has to be here!'_ After determining that what she was looking for wasn't in her room, she left and retraced her steps outside of the inn.

* * *

><p>After Gyūki's talk with Rihan, he decided to take a walk to cool his head. Perhaps he was too hard on the Second Commander. After all, he had no objections when the Supreme Commander proposed to Yohime. But as the years gone by, he wonders who will the Second Head leave his beloved Nura Clan to. Since the last few centuries, the Nura Clan began to slowly decline in 'fear'. If Rihan were to marry an ordinary human, can the Nura Clan be brought back to its former glory with an heir with just 14 of the Supreme Commander's blood? Even though Rihan was only 1/2 yokai, he still inherited his mother's ability. But, what will the heir inherit from an ordinary human mother? Can this heir survive in this world of ayakashi?

Gyūki walked down the steps of Mt. Nejireme. It was a cool winter night, but because the Mt. Nejireme was located in Shiga, snowfall was rare. This made a perfect place for hot springs. As he walked, Gyūki saw a small box on one of the steps. He picked it up and opened it.

There was a jeweled plum blossomed barrette inside. Why was it there? Did someone lose it?

"Gomen nasai!" Gyūki heard a voice and saw a young woman with chocolate brown hair coming up the steps. She stopped in front of Gyūki. "Gomen, but that barrette belongs to me." she said, catching her breath. "I dropped it." she explained and smiled in relief.

Gyūki stared at the woman for a moment. "What are you doing out here?" he asked. " Mt. Nejireme is very dangerous at night." he said. Yokai come out at night. A young girl being all alone like her would surely be attacked. "Oh, I went out of the inn to look for it…" Wakana looked around and realized she was lost. "Um, which way do I go to get to Togyunobo inn?" she asked.

Gyūki sighed in annoyance. "Go down the steps until you start seeing lights. Then follow the lights and you'll be back at the inn."

The girl smiled. "Arigato!" she said. she was about to turn around when she trip. She would've fallen down the stairs if Gyūki had not grabbed her arm and pulled her up.

The girl finally caught her balance and Gyūki let go of her arm. "Arigato, uh,"

"Gyūki." he said.

She smiled. "Arigato, Gyūki-san." she said. There was a pause when she spoke again. "Gyūki-san?"

"What?" he asked still a little annoyed.

"Why are you out here at night? Didn't you say it was dangerous?" she said then she gasped. "Something's troubling you, right?"

A vein popped out of his forehead as the nosy girl asked questions to satisfy her curiosity.

The brown haired girl gave him a warm smile. "Don't worry, Gyūki-san. " she said. "Just keep an optimistic mind and everything will work out in the end."

Gyūki was surprised at what she said. His first impression was that she was a stupid nosy human.

"I know from experience." she said. "Even if things don't look good now, it'll get better."

Despite her boldness towards him, her words touched him. Gyūki had been thing about the future in a pessimistic view. Everything worked out for the Supreme Commander, who simply did as he wished. Rihan is just like his father. He would do what he thinks is right. For him and the Nura Clan.

"I should get going now, before someone realizes I'm not there." the girl said. "Arigato Gyūki-san."  
>She waved goodbye and went down the stairs, carefully so she would not fall.<p>

* * *

><p>Wakana finally returned to the inn. Upon entering, Wakana heard a familiar voice.<p>

"Can we have two single rooms?' the voice said. "Do we have to pay now?"

Wakana turned to the front desk. There, was a blonde man with a scarf, and a man with long black hair.

"R-Rihan-san?" Wakana said.

Rihan looked at whoever said his name. "Yo, Wakana-chan." he said. He thought it would take longer to find her at the inn. "Whatcha doing?"

"I-I was," Wakana hid the box behind her back. "doing nothing." Rihan saw but didn't say anything. "What are you doing here, Rihan san?"

Rihan smiled. "I had family business here, remember?"

"O-oh, right. I have a field trip here." she awkwardly said.

"I see." Rihan smirked when hearing her stutter.

Kubinashi cleared his throat. Rihan looked at him. "Oh, right. Wakana-chan, this is my friend Kubinashi."

"Nice to finally meet you, Wakana-san." Kubinashi said politely.

"Kubinashi?" Wakana said. "Oh, you're the guy Kejōrō-chan has a crush on!" she blurted out. After she realized what she said, she covered her mouth and blushed. Rihan sweat dropped.

Kubinashi was frozen in shock. _'K-Kino?'_

"G-gomen nasai." Wakana said, still blushing.

Rihan enjoyed the awkwardness Wakana created, but spoke to Kubinashi. "Why don't you check on your rooms."

Kubinashi awkwardly agreed and bid goodbye to Wakana.

When he left, Wakana spoke. "Do you think Kejōrō-can will be mad?"

Rihan smirked. "Oh, I think she'll be very mad. She'll be furious." Wakana gulped and Rihan laughed.

Suddenly Kamiko came in. "There you are! Where the hell were you?" she grabbed her.

"Gomen Kamiko-san, I ran into Rihan-san." Wakana explained.

Kamiko looked at Rihan. "Look Wakana, I'm glad you finally getting yourself a boyfriend-"

"I'm not her boyfriend." Rihan said.

"But you can't disappear like that. You really scared me. You missed the hot springs, too. It's time for bed now." she said, ignoring Rihan.

"That's okay, Kamiko-chan. I get nervous around other girls in hot springs any ways." Wakana explained.

Kamiko sighed. "Fine, but we better get into our room. It's almost lights out time."

"Hai." Wakana said goodbye to Rihan and was dragged off by Kamiko.

Rihan waved goodbye but then saw a boy hiding behind a door watching the two girls. "Kamiko-chan…" Rihan recognized as one of Wakana's friends.

"Yo!" Rihan said, startling the boy.

"R-Rihan-san?" Akira said.

"Why are you stalking your own girlfriend?" Rihan asked.

"S-stalking? I'm not stalking." Akira denied. "Tsk. That-that's just silly."

"Right." Rihan said sarcastically.

Akira sighed in defeat. "Well, you see, I get really nervous sleeping in unfamiliar places. A-and Kamiko usually helps me feel relax." He immediately saw the perverted look on Rihan's face and knew what he was thinking. "It's nothing like that!" Akira blushed. "We just cuddle and I stroke her hair."

_'Wow, this guy's a loser.'_ Rihan thought.

"Because it's a school trip, girls and boys sleep in different rooms. I would have to find someone to switch rooms with after the lights turn out, so sensei doesn't suspect a thing." he explained. "The problem is I can't find anybody to switch rooms with."

Suddenly Rihan got an idea."Say, I've got a room. A single room. Perfect for cuddling and…stroking of hair."

Akira beamed.

"But," Rihan said. "I'll only give it to you if, and only if, you get me to take Kamiko's place in Wakana-chan's room." he said.

"Deal!" he said and ran to Kamiko and Wakana's room.

* * *

><p>Wakana was already in bed asleep when there was a knock on the door. Kamiko opened it, upset that she had to get up. "What?" she said and saw Akira.<p>

"Kamiko-chan, I finally got to switch rooms with someone!" he explained.

"Shhhhhhhhh!" Kamiko pulled him into her room. "You can't spend ONE night without me?"

"N-no." he said. Kamiko rolled her eyes.

"What's happening?" Wakana asked when slowly waking up.

"Wakana, I have to go with Akira." Kamiko said.

"Okay…" she said sleepily. Being friends with them for so long, she had gotten used to Akira's childish needs. "Goodnight, you two."

"Wakana-chan, I switched rooms with your friend Rihan." Akira explained.

Wakana's eyes shot opened. "What?"

"I-is that okay?"

Wakana sighed. "It's fine." Atleast it was someone she trusted.

"Goodnight Wakana-chan." the couple said and left the room. A little while later the door opened again and Rihan walked in.

Wakana stirred on her bed. "Rihan-san?"

"Yo, Wakana-chan." Rihan said softly.

Wakana sat up and rubbed her eyes before looking at Rihan, who was getting situated on his bed. "Why did switch rooms with Akira-kun?" she asked.

"Oh, he just seemed really desperate." Rihan explained. "You know how much of a helpful person I am." Actually, he thought it would be easier to watch over Wakana when he was closer to her. "And why are you here, Wakana-chan?" he asked. " Mt. Nejireme is known for its yokai rumors."

Wakana looked down. "Well, Akira-kun and Kamiko-san really wanted me to come and relaxing in the hot springs seemed tempting, but…"

Rihan realized she missed relaxing at the hot springs. "What were you doing outside of the inn? It's very dangerous at night."

"I-I lost something." she explained and looked at the box sitting on the table. "I went out to look for it."

Rihan frown. "You should never got out at night all alone for something like that." he said. He would never risk Wakana's life on something like a barrette.

"Gomen, Rihan-san. It's just…" Wakana wanted to say that the Christmas gift meant a lot to her, but couldn't bring herself to say it. She blushed instead. Rihan smirked when he saw this and knew what she was about to say, but didn't press on any further.

"Wakana-chan, didn't you say you missed the hot springs?" he asked, changing the subject. Wakana looked up and nodded. Rihan smirked. "How would you like to go now?" he asked.

"We can't. Sensei would not allow the students to go now. Everybody should stay in their rooms." Wakana explained.

"But wouldn't you like to go now? When it's not too crowded?" he reasoned.

"But-but-"

"Are you scared, Wakana-chan?"

"Huh? N-no."

"Well, it's understandable. Be afraid of yokai and go out alone at night in a hot spring."

Wakana blushed. "We'll get caught."

Rihan smirked. "Trust me, I'm really good and stealth. Nobody will catch us."

Wakana thought for a moment and shook her head. "Are you still scared?" Rihan asked. Then he got an idea. "Do you want me to come with you?"

Wakana's face blushed more. "N-no! That's very inappropriate!"

Rihan laughed. "Relax, Wakana-chan. You have a swimsuit?"

* * *

><p>"We're gonna get caught." Wakana whispered, imagining the consequences when getting caught sneaking into a hot spring late at night with a boy.<p>

"Shh. We won't get caught. Trust me." he said while he led her to women's hot spring. "Okay, Wakana-chan, we're here." he whispered. "You go in first and change, then go to the hot spring. I'll go after you."

Wakana obeyed. "Y-you won't peek, right?"

Rihan laughed. "Do you _want _me to peek?"

Wakana blushed. "No!"

"Then hurry up and change." Rihan said with a smirk on his face. "Call me when you're done."

Wakana quickly changed in her bikini. She knew that in most hot springs, girl usually didn't wear anything. But, Wakana felt self-conscious around them and brought a bikini just in case. When she was done, she called for Rihan and went into the hot spring.

Wakana took a deep breath. The hot water felt good on her. She closed her eyes and listened to the crickets nearby. Wakana felt completely relaxed and took a few more deep breaths. She deserved this after everything that's happened.

The door slid opened and Rihan walked in wearing the pair of black swim trunks he stole from the inn's shop.

"Look, Rihan-san." Wakana said. "There are paper talismans over there." she said pointing at the wall. There, was a piece of paper with the bull. The bull was facing away from them so they saw they bull's butt and it's head sticking out from the side.

"I wouldn't trust those talismans, Wakana-chan." Rihan said as he stepped into the hot spring.

Wakana looked at Rihan and blushed. She didn't realized Rihan had such muscular body. Because he always wore a yukata, she never really saw his very fit chest.

She slowly moved to the other side of the hot spring. Rihan noticed and smirked. He began moving closer to Wakana. Of course Wakana notice and began moving away faster.

Rihan's smirk widened. "What's wrong Wakana-chan?"

Wakana sputtered and looked away. "S-stay on that side."

"Why?" He asked innocently, though he already knew why.

"B-because…" was all she could say and moved farther from him. Rihan, being the quick hanyō that he is, grabbed Wakana and pulled her closer to him. Wakana panicked and tried to pull herself away from him. Rihan wrapped his arm around her waist, destroying her chances of escape. Wakana whimpered and Rihan laughed. "Relax. I won't do anything, I promise."

Wakana looked at his handsome face and blushed. She was getting lightheaded and it was getting difficult to breathe. She began huffing with her mouth, trying to get her breathing back to normal. Rihan saw her flustered face. '_Wakana-chan is putting on such a cute face.'_ he thought.

He patted her head. "You okay, Wakana-chan? Don't faint on me." he said as Wakana began to calm down though she didn't let her guard down. Rihan smirked at her tenseness but leaned back on the rock behind him. Wakana noticed and leaned on the rock and Rihan's side, with his arm still around her. She saw him close his eyes and she herself slowly began to relax again.

She took deep breaths once more and began playing with the water. She flicked the water and felt the cold air when she lifted her arm from the water and placed it back in. She sunk in the water, allowing only her head to be above. She gulped some air and placed her mouth underwater. She then blew bubbles on the surface.

Rihan opened his one eye. "Having fun?" he chuckled.

Wakana stopped and looked up at Rihan. "Hai." she said and smiled. Rihan smiled back.

"Arigato, Rihan-san." she said. She then went back to blowing bubbles.

Rihan laughed and sunk down and blew bubbles himself. They both blew bubbles on the surface of the water. They wanted to see would blow bubbles the longest before taking a breath. Naturally, Rihan won.

Wakana sat up coughing. Rihan grinned triumphantly and patted Wakana back. "You okay?" Wakana nodded and leaned back on the rock. Wakana smiled and laughed.

_'Wakana-chan's so cute.'_ Rihan thought as he got closer to her. Now, he was feeling lightheaded.

Wakana noticed Rihan getting closer to her and froze.

"Wakana-chan…" Rihan said as his face got even closer with Wakana's.

_'He's going to kiss me!' _Wakana screamed in her head. Yet, she couldn't do anything. _'Rihan is really sweet to me. Maybe…'_ As their lips got closer, Wakana stood up at the last minute, startling Rihan a little. But, then he smirked.

"G-gomen, Rihan-san." Wakana said as she blushed. "I-I think we should go back to our room now."

Rihan paused for a moment and his smirk grew wider.

"Nice boobs."

Wakana, unsure what he meant looked down and saw her exposed chest. Apparently, the string to her bikini was untied and when she stood up, Rihan saw _everything._

"AHHHHHHHH!" Wakana screamed and sat back down in the water and covered herself.

Rihan looked and saw her bikini top snagged between two big rocks. "Look what I found, Wakana-chan." he said as he grabbed Wakana's top. "Do you want it back?" Wakana saw and whimpered.

"G-give it back." she said sternly.

"I love to, Wakana-chan. But, you're all the way over there. Come closer so I can give it to you."

Wakana gave him a look of horror while Rihan laughed.

* * *

><p>Wakana and Rihan walked back to their room after Wakana finally got Rihan to give back her top. Wakana cried softly as she laid on her bed.<p>

"You don't have to be ashamed, Wakana-chan." Rihan said. "They're really nice. Nice and perky."

"Ahhh." Wakana groaned and crawled under her blanket, believing it will keep her safe from thoughts of her wardrobe malfunction.

Rihan laughed and crawled on his bed. "Goodnight, Wakana-chan."

"Goodnight." Wakana mumbled.

After hours of sleeping, Rihan woke up. He looked at the clock. _'3:00. Still early.'_ Rihan yawned and stretched. He looked over at Wakana's bed and saw a lump that seemed to be Wakana's sleeping body. Upon further observation, Rihan noticed Wakana was shivering. Rihan got up and looked at Wakana. He felt her hands and her forehead. _'She's cold, probably from staying in the hot spring for so long.' _he thought. _'She'll get a fever in the morning.'_

He looked around for an extra blanket, but saw none. Rihan sighed and took his blanket and then covered Wakana with it. _'I can manage without a blanket for tonight.'_ He waited for Wakana to stop shivering. But, she didn't. Rihan sighed again before crawling in Wakana's bed. He wrapped his arms around her and snuggled, keeping her warm.

* * *

><p><strong>I've finally introduced some conflict for the Nura couple!<strong>

**But, I don't know when I can write again. School is about to start again and I need to start cracking down on that (college sucks!). Anyways, I'll try to write one more before school. But, we'll see…**

**Thank you again for reviewing and please review this chapter too!**


	6. Chapter 6 Truth

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nurarihyon no Mago.**

**This will be the last chapter before school and I will not be uploading for some time. It was fun while it last. :(**

**Thank you for all the reviews.**

**Happiness Comes to Those Who Smile**

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

Wakana snuggled closer to the muscular chest on her bed. She inhaled and smelled the musky scent. Wakana smiled and snuggled closer. _'Wait!'_ Wakana opened her eyes and looked at the handsome face above. _'Rihan-san?'_ Wakana was shocked. She didn't know why Rihan was in her bed. She quietly tried pry herself from Rihan's arms. Unfortunately, Rihan wrapped his arms around her tighter. Wakana sighed and tried again.

Rihan began to wake up because of all the movement in his arms, but kept his eyes closed. He already knew Wakana was awake and was trying to push herself away from him. He snuggled closer, smelled her plum blossom scent, trying to savor that very moment. After Wakana gave up, she lied there, and took deep breaths. She looked Rihan's face again, and realized how close it was to her. Wakana blushed. Suddenly she felt her hand move on its own as it brushed the hair from his handsome face. Wakana blushed and immediately forced her hand back down.

Rihan, being awake, fought the smile forming on his face. After failing, he decided to roll on top of Wakana, who thought he was still asleep.

"Ack!" Wakana said as the weight on top of her increased. "R-Rihan-san…" She tried to push him off, but he was too heavy. Wakana whimpered.

Rihan moved his head to face her and opened his eye. "Ohayo, Wakana-chan." he said softly with a smirk on his face.

"R-Rihan-san, please get off me." she said.

"Aren't you gonna tell me good morning?"

"Ohayo, Rihan-san…" Wakana said. "Please get off me."

Rihan set his elbow on the mattress and placed his chin on his hand. He smirked as he got comfortable after settling on top of the petite girl.

After seeing that he wasn't moving, Wakana sighed and asked, "Why are you on my bed, Rihan-san?"

"You were cold, last night. I came here to keep you warm." Rihan innocently explained. "You were gonna get sick."

Wakana smiled in relief. "Arigato, Rihan-san." she said as the air going into her lungs decreased.

"Of course, I would've warmed you up better if it weren't for these clothes-"

"Eh, Rihan-san, I'm warm now!" Wakana said as she tried to push him off again.

Rihan gave her an amused look and rolled off. Wakana inhaled sharply and sat up. Then there was a loud pounding on the door.

"Wakana-chaaan!" Akira's voice was heard. "Let's all go to eat breakfast together downstairs! Rihan-san can come too! Wakana-chaaan!"

Rihan opened the door, slightly annoyed at the yelling so early in the morning. "Ohayo, Rihan-san!" Akira yelled cheerfully.

"Yo." Rihan said with his eyebrow twitched.

Wakana came to the door. "Ohayo, Akira-kun." she said cheerfully. "How did you sleep last night?"

"It was great, thanks." Akira said. "And yours"

"We had an interesting night, didn't we Wakana-chan?" Rihan said.

Wakana looked away, hiding the blush on her face.

Rihan smirked when he thought about last night and Wakana's little accident.

Akira, oblivious to what's happening, told the couple to meet them downstairs for breakfast. Kamiko saved a table for them. Then Akira left to let Wakana and Rihan to get ready.

"Rihan-san, I have to change now." Wakana said.

Rihan sat down at his bed.

"And the bathrooms are crowded…"

Rihan smirked. "It's not like I haven't already seen them."

"Ahhh." Wakana groaned in embarrassment, knowing what Rihan meant. She grabbed Rihan's sleeve and pulled him to the door.

"Gomen." she said as she opened the door and gently pushed Rihan out. Rihan laughed. '_Wakana-chan is so shy.'_

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><p>After breakfast, Wakana and her class left the inn with Rihan and Kubinashi. The girls stared at the two new men that graced them with their presence.<p>

"Who are those two? They're not our chaperones." one student said.

"Who care? They're gorgeous!" another replied.

"I think their friends of Wakana."

"I didn't know she was that popular with the male gender."

"Is she dating both of them?"

Wakana blushed at the comments whispered by her classmates. "I-It's nothing like that!" she quickly clarified. Rihan smirked and Kubinashi sweat dropped.

"Pffffht. Wakana and this guy? That's a little farfetched. I bet this guy wouldn't even go for her." one student announced.

"Hey," Rihan said. "That's not true. Besides, last night Wakana and I saw each other bare-chested-"

"Rihan-san!" Wakana yelled, making him stop.

Rihan looked innocently at Wakana. "What?"

"Rihan, please don't embarrass Wakana-san in front of her peers." Kubinashi said, tired of Rihan's constant teasing since they went to breakfast.

"Oh, you're just jealous that you haven't seen Kino bare-chested-"

"Shut up!" Kubinashi yelled and blushed.

Rihan grinned. Today, he got to poke fun at two people at the same time.

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><p>Wakana finally came home after a long ride on the train home. '<em>What a crazy day yesterday was.'<em>

As she walked up the steps of her house, she noticed a small black animal sleeping on the side next to the front door. Wakana immediately recognized it.

Every once and awhile, her family restaurant was visited by stray animals. Her father used to feed them scraps from the restaurant. A regular was a little black cat whom Wakana named, Haru. After the fire, Wakana thought she would never see the animals, especially Haru, ever again.

She didn't recall brining Haru to their home, so she didn't know how he got to her front steps. It was as if he was waiting for her.

She brought her hand on the animal and gently pet the animal. "Haru-chan?" Wakana said softly as she woke the cat. He woke and began purring. Wakana smiled and took the cat inside her home.

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><p>The Sanba Garasu flew above the buildings on patrol. Suddenly, Sasami spotted thick black smoke in the air.<p>

"Kuroumaru!" she yelled for her eldest brother. "Over there! The smoke looks irregular." She pointed towards the thick smoke.

Kuroumaru nodded. "We should get over there." And they flew towards it. It began to get harder to breathe as they flew closer to the burning building. The blackness made it harder to see, forcing the ayakashi to land. They covered their face with their sleeves, trying to prevent themselves from inhaling the smoke.

Soon, Kappa arrived and used water to try and stop the flames.

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><p>Wakana walked in her house and turned on the lights. <em>'Ah, home sweet home.'<em> She smiled and gently placed Haru on the floor.

"Are you hungry, Haru-chan?" Wakana asked.

Wakana looked at the fridge for some leftovers for Haru. She took some chicken out and sliced it into little pieces while humming a cheerful tune. Then she moved the chicken pieces to a bowl and placed it on the floor by Haru. She watched the cat approach the bowl and began eating. Wakana smiled and turned around.

Suddenly she felt a painful hit on the back of her head. Everything went black as she fell to the floor.

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><p>The fire continued to spread throughout the building. The Sanba Garasu helped Kappa by trying to fan the flames out. But it was no use.<p>

"The fire is too strong!" Tosakamaru said. "Kappa can't put it out!"

"It's no use." Kappa said to himself as sweat fell from his face.

"We must look for Gotokuneko before he attacks somewhere else!" Kuroumaru yelled as he flew above looking for an abnormal cat yokai.

"I'll get reinforcements!" Sasami yelled and flew away.

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><p>Wakana woke up on the floor with agonizing pain on the back of her head. She moved her hand to touch it, but felt something wet on her hair. Her vision was blurred but she looked and saw a red liquid on her fingers. Wakana gasped. <em>'W-What happened?' <em> Wakana got up and her vision slowly got back to normal. _'It's so hot. Why is it so hot?'_ She looked around and her eyes widened.

Fire. The hot flames engulfed the kitchen. She turned around and saw something behind her. Her injury made it hard to recognize it, but it was Haru. Only that it seem to grown into a giant cat with bright yellow eyes.

"H-Haru-chan?" She said, fighting the pain in her head.

The cat growled and hissed, causing the flames to grow. Wakana backed away when it stepped closer. She looked at her surroundings. The black and front door was blocked by flames. The cat took another step closer to her. Before she knew it, she turned and ran up the stairs.

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><p>"Rihan-sama!" Sasami flew to the Main House. "Where is the Second Commander?"<p>

The yokai were startled at the screaming crow tengu. "Rihan-sama!"

"What is it?" Rihan ran out of his room. He had just gotten home.

"Second Commander, there is fire." the crow tengu said. "Kappa can't put it out. The flames are really strong. It's definitely from the yokai, Gotokuneko! "

Rihan nodded and looked at the yokai of the Main House. "Oi, everyone! Get ready for battle! I need yokai that can put out fires!"

Rihan's Hyakki Yakō gathered and left the Main House.

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><p>"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Wakana screamed as the yokai chased after her. The fire was spreading quickly. Unable to find an exit, Wakana ran into the nearest room: her parents' room.<p>

She coughed and wheezed as she walked to the nightstand farthest from the door.

Then she heard the giant cat pounding on the door, trying to break it open.

Wakana quickly opened the drawer of the nightstand and picked something up.

Suddenly, the door busted opened the cat walked in while the flames grew more. The cat growled and got ready to pounce at the human girl.

Wakana coughed. Just as he was about to pounce Wakana, she brought her hands up, showing the gun in her hand. Wakana took a deep breath and shot the demonic cat.

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><p>"The fire's dying!" Kuroumaru yelled. With the help of Setsura and some other yokai, Kappa finally was able to put out the fire.<p>

"Does anybody see any survivors?" Rihan asked.

The ayakashi looked inside the burnt building.

"I don't see anything." One yokai said.

"Keep looking, there has to be someone." Kubinashi said and looked harder. But, he couldn't find anyone. "Impossible. Why would Gotokuneko attack a place with no one inside?"

Rihan realized what Gotokuneko's plans were. His eyes widened and he yelled, "Everybody, this was all part of his plan! We have to get to Wakana-chan now!

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><p>The cat hissed with the bullet made contact with his leg. "You little bitch!"<p>

Wakana gasped when it spoke, but shot it again.

He hissed louder and slammed Wakana on the shelf on the wall.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Wakana yelled as the force made her break the shelf. The pieces made deep cuts on her arms and legs, and the impact made the wound on her head bleed more. She tried to stand back up but the pain in her legs increased, causing her to fall back down. Her vision began to blur again because of the large amount of blood loss. Wakana felt herself slowly slip out of consciousness.

"Help." she softy, but finally succumbed to her wounds and fainted.

The cat grinned like a maniac as he watch the girl give up. He was about to finish is job when he heard an explosion on the roof.

"Stay away from Wakana-chan!" Rihan yelled.

Gotokuneko turned and saw Rihan and his Hyakki Yakō in all their glory.

The cat laughed. "You're too late!"

Rihan unsheathed Nenekirimaru and held it to the giant cat. "You don't look so tough." Rihan said. "And you seem to be working alone."

Gotokuneko growled. "I've waiting for this moment. This is when I that my revenge against the Nura Clan!"

"The hell you will!" Rihan yelled back as he and his clan began to attack.

Wakana slowly began to wake up. Her eyes fluttered open. "R-Rihan-san?" The she saw the Hyakki Yakō behind him and gasped. Kubinashi's head wasn't attached to his body. Weapons flew from a monk's robe. There were three yokai with crow wings. A man with one eye. Setsura was blowing ice at the fire with a young boy with webbed hands and a white plate on his head, who was using water. Kejōrō's long hair tired to tie the cats legs together. _'What's going on?'_

"Y-Yokai?" Wakana said.

"Rihan-sama!" Kubinashi said. "Wakana-san is still alive!"

Rihan nodded and looked at Gotokuneko. "Oi, according to the Nura Clan's elders, you were banished because of your uncontrollable and dangerous fires."

Wakana listen quietly. "N-Nura Clan?"

Rihan's face darkened. "So don't go waltzing into MY territory, destroy families, and think you can get away with it!" Rihan face darkened as he brought his sword up and swung it at the cat.

Gotokuneko tried to dodge it but the wounds from Wakana's gun made him move more slowly. Although he was able to avoid the fatal blow, the Nenekirimaru did make a deep cut on the cat's arm. He growled and hissed in pain.

"Oi, it's looks like you're already wounded." Rihan observed.

Wakana lifted her head, but the sting on her head made it harder to see so she set it back down and took deep breaths. "Rihan-san…" Wakana said softly. '_Is Rihan-san a yokai?'_

"You'll pay for that!" Gotokuneko yelled at Rihan. Ignoring the pain, Gotokuneko tried to claw Rihan with his paw.

But right before her eyes, Wakana saw Rihan suddenly disappear right when the paw was about to touch him. '_What happened? Where did he go?' _Wakana began to panic. Has the wound on her head cause her to hallucinate?

Then she saw Rihan reappear behind the giant cat. "I won't let some low life yokai like you terrorize the people I care about!" With that, Rihan cut Gotokuneko in half with the Nenekirimaru before the yokai could even speak.

Wakana watched as the blood splattered on the walls of the remains of her home. The two halves of the body fell on the floor, leaving pools of blood before disappearing. Wakana began to shake in fear. '_Rihan-san did that?'_

Rihan landed on the floor and looked at Wakana. "Wakana-chan, are you alright?" Rihan asked. Wakana looked at him. Wakana sat up, but the pain was too strong. Rihan ran over to her. "Oi, oi, don't push yourself!"

Wakana flinched herself away from him. Rihan stopped, with a hurt look on his face for a second. "Wakana-chan, it's okay now. You're safe." he said giving her a reassuring smile.

Wakana thought for a moment. _'Rihan-san has never hurt me before. Why would he now?'_ Wakana was about to speak but the throbbing in her head caused her to cry in pain. "Wakana-chan!" Rihan yelled, holding her.

She cried again and began to slip back into darkness.

Rihan watched as Wakana's body went limp.

"Is Wakana-san alright?" Kubinashi asked.

"She fainted." Rihan said.

Kubinashi watched as Rihan's hand hovered over her wounds and saw them slowly disappear.

"Hopefully she's okay." Rihan said. "She lost a lot of blood, but this is all I can do for now." Rihan picked her up and carried her bridal style. "Let's go back to the Main House."

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><p>"So Rihan, it looks like your girlfriend knows your secret now." Hihi said.<p>

"She's not my girlfriend." Rihan replied. _'Why does everybody keep saying that?'_ He and the clan leaders were discussing the events that happened at Wakana's home.

"Well, it seems like you got rid of the threat of Gotokuneko. Good job, Rihan." the Supreme Commander said. "Is Wakana awake yet?"

Rihan shook his head. "She'll be out for a couple of hours. I told Kino and Setsura to take care of her when she wakes up."

"Gyūki contacted the Bakeneko Clan when you left his place. They thank you for taking care of their rouge Neko." Nurarihyon said.

Rihan nodded while looking at the ground.

"So, now we wait for Wakana to wake up." his father said. "Then you should tell her everything."

Rihan's eyes remained fixed on the ground. He frowned and nodded again.

Nurarihyon watched his son. He knew his son wasn't exactly looking forward to this conversation. He asked the clan leaders if he could have a private moment with his son.

After they left, the Supreme Commander asked Rihan, "What's troubling you, son?"

When he was young, Rihan would confide to his mother about his troubles. But after her death, Rihan told his troubles to his father. Nurarihyon was never good at being a gentle listener. Normally, he would just pat his son on his head and say, "Cheer up, kiddo!" With that, Rihan would confide in Kubinashi. But, Kubinashi was always uncomfortable on giving his leader personal advice. Rihan was never mad at his father's shortcomings. He knew his father really did try to fill his mother's shoes after her death. Rihan understood that, as the Supreme Commander of the Nura Clan, his father was never really good at home life.

"Wakana-chan might not want to be friends anymore. She's afraid of yokai." Rihan explained.

Nurarihyon smiled. "So? Every human is afraid of yokai. Just like your mother, she actually tried to kill me."

Rihan sighed, still not feeling confident in his future with Wakana.

"Rihan," Nurarihyon said. "not all women will leave when things get rough."

After Yamabuki, Rihan has closed his heart to other women, afraid that they would leave him as well. Over the years, Nurarihyon knew his son wasn't _really _over his first wife. But as time went by, Rihan slowly began to move on in life. It happened centuries ago, after all. Occasionally, Rihan would go out, have some fun, meet some people, do things his father would rather not think about. However, Nurarihyon knew that the wound Yamabuki left in his son's heart still remained.

That's why Nurarihyon was beyond happy when Rihan met Wakana. Sure Yamabuki and Wakana were really different. Yamabuki was a smart, graceful ayakashi. Wakana is a clumsy and awkward human, and is somewhat oblivious to certain things. But, she managed to put a genuine smile on his son's face. She seemed to have helped Rihan heal his wound a little and made him open his heart once again. He may not show it, but Nurarihyon was truly grateful for Wakana. He knew that someday, his son will find love, comfort, and happiness with her. Therefore, it'd be a shame if things ended here.

Rihan looked at his father. "Give her a chance, Rihan." Nurarihyon said. _'She may end up surprising you.'_

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><p>An hour after talking with his father, Rihan sat on his parents' sakura tree and thought about what to say to Wakana.<p>

Setsura walked up to the tree. "Rihan, the girl's wake."

Rihan nodded and jumped of the tree. "Thanks. " he said and followed Setsura to the room where Wakana was staying. He slid open the door and saw Wakana on the sleeping mat hugging her knees. She looked up and saw him with puffy cheeks and watery eyes. Rihan sat down next to her.

There was an awkward pause before Rihan spoke. "I'm sorry your house burned down."

Wakana sniffed and wiped the tears from her face.

"But, you don't have to worry about Gotokuneko anymore. You're safe here."

Wakana sniffed before speaking. "Arigato, Rihan-san, for saving me."

Rihan smiled, knowing Wakana still found comfort in him. There was another awkward pause. "So…now you know everything."

Wakana nodded and stopped weeping. "Everything you said, about the house being haunted, was true?"

Rihan nodded. "Are you scared?"

Wakana looked up. "A little." she honestly said

Rihan frowned.

"But, I know you would never hurt me." Wakana explained. "I-I trust you."

RIhan's frown turned back to a smile. He was relieved that Wakana's view of him stayed the same. "Wakana," he said. "My clan will never hurt humans. I will take care of you."

A slight redness appeared on Wakana's face, but Rihan figured it was from the crying. "A-Arigato." she said again.

Rihan gently pulled Wakana pulled closer to him and wrapped his arms around her. Wakana was surprised by this but relaxed when she smelled his musky scent. "So…everyone here is a yokai?"

Rihan grinned. "Yeah."

"What kind of yokai are you?" Wakana asked.

"I'm the son of Nurarihyon."

"…"

"What's wrong Wakana-chan?"

"You mean you're the yokai that sneaks into people's houses and steal their food?"

"Yep."

"Rihan-san, you don't seem like a scary yokai at all." Wakana thought for a moment. _'I suppose that makes sense. That was sort of how we met after all.'_ Wakana's eyes widened when she realized something. "Wait. The son of Nurarihyon. That means Oji-san…"

Rihan chuckled.

"Oji-san is Nurarihyon?"

Rihan nodded. "Yep."

Wakana blinked in shock. "Everyone here is a yokai…"

"Well, I'm only half." Rihan said.

Wakana pulled herself away from him, not understanding what he meant.

"My mother was a human." he explained.

"…So you're a hanyō?"

Rihan nodded.

Wakana looked down as she thought. _'If Oji-san married a human, that means yokai aren't so bad. Rihan-san is proof of that, right?"_ Wakana smiled.

After that, they spent the night talking about yokai. Wakana asked a few questions and Rihan answered. They mostly chatted about Rihan's family and the Nura Clan. Sometimes he had to reassure her that the Nura Clan won't harm humans. They also talked about living in the feudal time of Japan and some basic knowledge of ayakashi. Rihan tried to explain what 'fear' was, but it kept confusing her.

"Why do you call it 'fear' and then tell people to not be afraid?"

"Should we call it 'charisma' then?"

Wakana giggled. "It would be less misleading."

"Yes, but unfortunately, some yokai are bad and you should fear them." he explained. " Like Gotokuneko."

Wakana looked down, remembering the murderous yokai cat.

"But you did pretty good, for a human who is afraid of yokai." Rihan said. "You shot him, twice."

Wakana stared at the ground. "Oh, right. I forgot about that."

"You were really brave, Wakana-chan." Rihan grinned. "But your wounds got to you and you fainted."

Wakana touched the back of her head and looked at her arms and legs.

"I healed them for you, Wakana-chan. I inherited my mother's ability remember?"

"Oh, right. Arigato, Rihan-san." Wakana smiled.

After awhile, Wakana was getting tired again. So, Rihan laid her back down on the mat on the ground and stood up. "Goodnight, Wakana-chan." he said. But when he slid the door open, there was a loud thud. He looked at the ground and saw Kurotabō, Kubinashi, and Kejōrō on the floor. Then Rihan looked outside and saw that almost every member of the Nura Clan was outside.

His father stepped out. "Oi, Rihan." he said. "We were not listening to your conversation." he lied.

Rihan sweat dropped. Nurarihyon looked at Wakana. "Konbanwa, Wakana." he said casually.

"K-Konbanwa, Oji-san." Wakana said. She was a little frightened at the yokai at the door.

Rihan sighed. "Okay, everybody out! Let Wakana-chan rest.

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><p>After a few days, Wakana began to get used living with yokai. She was fond of the smaller yokai, like Nattō Kozō and Sannokuchi. Wakana thought they were cute. But there were some that really scared her, like Hitotsume. His eye scared her and she had the feeling that he didn't like her very much. Wakana was also asked to work at the kitchen again. Seeing how they were letting her live here, she figure cooking for them would be the least she could do.<p>

"Are you sure, Oji-san?" Wakana asked. "I can find another place."

"No, no, Wakana." Nurarihyon said. "It would be a pleasure to have you with us. Besides, it will make my son very happy."

Wakana smiled. "Arigato, Oji-san."

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><p>Rihan was really happy that Wakana was finally getting comfortable living in the Nura Mansion. He sat on the sakura tree smoking a pipe.<p>

Just then, Kejōrō walked up to the tree. "Oi, Rihan." she said. "Did you say something to Kubinashi?"

Rihan looked down and smirked. "What do you mean?"

"Ever since you guys came back from Mt. Nejireme, he's been avoiding me." Kejōrō explained. "You didn't tell him anything, did you?" Kejōrō eyes him suspiciously.

Rihan's smirk grew. "Trust me, Kino. _I_ didn't say anything."

Kejōrō still looked at him suspiciously, but figure she had no evidence saying that he was lying. "Okay." she said and left.

Rihan watched as she left. Then closed his eye and began relaxing again.

Suddenly a ball wrapped in bandages with three holes floated up next to him. "Rihan-sama…" it said.

Rihan had a questioning look on his face. "I never saw this type of yokai before. What clan are you from?"

"…it's me."

"And you are…?"

The ball sighed. "Kubinashi."

A grin formed on Rihan's face. "Kubinashi? What happened?" he asked, fighting the laughed that was trying to come out.

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><p><em>Kubinashi finally decided. He would confront <em>_Kejōrō__. He had been avoiding her after he heard Wakana blurt out __Kejōrō__'s secret about her feelings towards him. Knowing this, he couldn't look her in the eye without feeling his cheeks turn dark red. But this time would be different. He was going to tell her._

_Kubinashi marched to the East Wing where he knew __Kejōrō__ and Wakana would be working. When he slid the kitchen door open, he saw that only Wakana was there. She had her back towards him because she was cooking and didn't notice him. He decided to ask her where __Kejōrō__ was. His head floated near her._

_"Wakana-san-"_

_Wakana turned her head and saw the dismembered head. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Wakana grabbed the nearest thing: the frying pan, which was still hot, and slammed it on the floating head. "AHH! AHHH! AHHH!" she screamed while hitting his head multiple times with the frying pan._

_Eventually __Kejōrō__ and Setsura came back. They just stood there, watching Wakana beat the spit out of Kubinashi._

_When Wakana finally stopped, __Kejōrō__ explained that Kubinashi's head was just like that and he had no intention of hurting her._

_"G-Gomen nasai!" Wakana yelled. _

_But it was too late. Kubinashi's head was already, purple, lumpy, and pulsating._

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><p>Rihan fell off the tree laughing. "AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"<p>

"It's not funny!"Kubinashi yelled, a vein popped out of his bandaged head.

"Yeah haha it is" Rihan said holding his stomach.

"Shut up, Rihan!"

Rihan wiped a tear forming in the corner of his eye. "Wakana-chan is really strong. She would've made a great yokai." he said and began laughing again.

Kubinashi's eyes narrowed at the Second Commander. But then he sighed and forgave him, seeing how it made his leader so happy.

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><p><strong>I've never written an action-y scene so I'm sorry if it wasn't that great. And sorry if there wasn't much RihanxWakana in this chapter. I wanted to write more, but the chapter was already so long. <strong>

**Poor Kubinashi. His encounters with Wakana are so unpleasant.**

**Anyways, thank you for reading. It will take awhile before I can upload again because most of my time will be spent on school and work. :(**

**Thanks again for reading and please review this chapter.**


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